The quiet sound of the rolling surf only accentuates the tranquility of the Japanese port city of Zushi, Kanagawa Prefecture, where artist Yusuke Hanai has his studio. Hanai, an admirer of American surfing culture who has a deep attachment to Zushi, is known for incorporating messages of sustainability in his artwork. This UT T-shirt collaboration is a perfect representation of all that Yusuke Hanai stands for.
“It all goes back to an everyday but unpleasant memory of seeing pieces of trash in the water when surfing.”
Yusuke Hanai is known for promoting sustainability, but how did he become interested in environmental issues? He says that it all goes back to an everyday but unpleasant memory of seeing pieces of trash in the water when surfing.
“Most surfers make an effort to keep their beaches clean,” he says. “Here, too, we gather once a month to pick up trash. But when I did some research, I discovered that the trash we were picking up was not necessarily from the area. Most of it is discarded in other towns and cities, where it gets picked up by the wind and ends up in a river. From there, it washes down to the ocean. So cleaning up the beach doesn’t address the fundamental problem. The more I learned about this issue, the more I realized that I needed to use my platform to do everything I could to raise awareness.”
Hanai is a mild-mannered speaker, but there is real passion behind his voice. In fact, he was instrumental in the decision to use 20% recycled polyester in the T-shirts for this collaboration.
“Asking UT to develop the fabric blend was the least I could do,” he says. “If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t be honest to the message that I’m trying to convey as an artist, and there would be no point to this collaboration with UT. I don’t really like the flimsy feeling of recycled polyester, but the fabric they developed is nice and thick, so I’m happy with it. I would prefer to make T-shirts from 100% recycled material, of course, but it is promising to see a company as large as UNIQLO moving in the right direction.”
Hanai hopes that this collaboration will also help the people who buy his designs start thinking about recycling. That was the inspiration behind the phrase included in one design: “one foot in front of the other.”
“T-shirts are all about self-expression,” says Hanai. “
“When someone wears a band’s tee, it shows their interest in that band. The same is true of message tees like this one—you have to be sympathetic to the message to want to wear it.” Although it is not apparent to the eye that the T-shirts in this collection are made of recycled material, choosing to wear something that has been recycled is, in itself, a way to communicate one’s beliefs.
Finally, Hanai discusses what evolution means to him as an artist.
“I would love it if my work were to evoke a positive response in society,” he says. “Ideally, people will agree with my message and be inspired to make a change themselves. If my work stimulates a greater response over time, it will mean that I am evolving as an artist.”
PROFILE
Yusuke Hanai | Born in Kanagawa Prefecture in 1978, Hanai studied art in San Francisco in his 20s and has exhibited a wide variety of works in Japan and abroad. His published art books include Ordinary People. In addition to creating art, Hanai sometimes teaches art at a public elementary school in Paramount, CA, on a volunteer basis.
This design depicts people working together to reach the stars, a symbol of a bright future.
With this piece, Hanai is encouraging people to take a step forward for the good of society.
© Yusuke Hanai
