Toshiyuki Kita

Toshiyuki Kita was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1942. He graduated in industrial design from Naniwa College in 1964 and established his design office in 1967. Two years later, he expanded his practice to Milan, beginning an enduring dialogue between Japanese culture and the experimental spirit of Italian design. His approach combines technical development with close attention to comfort, adaptability, and the emotional relationship between people and objects.

Kita has designed furniture, lighting, electronics, robots, appliances, and domestic objects for manufacturers in Japan and Europe. His celebrated Wink lounge chair and Kick table for Cassina entered important museum collections, while his broader work is represented at institutions including the Museum of Modern Art and the Centre Pompidou. Alongside industrial design, he has dedicated much of his career to revitalizing Japanese regional crafts and connecting traditional techniques with contemporary production. He received the Compasso d'Oro International Career Award in 2011 and was appointed a Commendatore of the Order of the Star of Italy in 2017.