Works by creators with disabilities are attracting increasing attention, with some entering business partnerships with airlines and publishers. Art by people with disabilities is gaining more recognition.
In Okayama Prefecture, too, the General Incorporated Association DESIGN GOALs is working on a project in which creators with disabilities and designers form project teams to create designs requested by companies.
I heard that products featuring original artwork by artists with disabilities and workshops would be gathering in Kojima over Golden Week, so I went to the Kurashiki DESIGN GOALs Collection 2024.
The information presented here was accurate when this article was published in May 2024. Please note that it may differ from current information.
What is DESIGN GOALs?
DESIGN GOALs is a program run by the General Incorporated Association DESIGN GOALs, in which creators with disabilities and designers form project teams to create designs requested by companies.
Much art by people with disabilities is created on a non-commercial basis as part of “leisure support,” a preparatory step toward employment and social participation.
However, the DESIGN GOALs PROJECT run by the General Incorporated Association DESIGN GOALs is based on the principle that recognizing the value of designs by creators with disabilities and ensuring they receive compensation leads to their social participation and income.
Companies that participate in the project also benefit by contributing to social causes.
What is the Kurashiki DESIGN GOALs Collection 2024?
The Kurashiki DESIGN GOALs Collection 2024, hosted by the General Incorporated Association DESIGN GOALs, was held on Friday, May 3 (national holiday), at Kojima Civic Exchange Center in Kojima, Kurashiki City.
This was the third time the event was held, and the theme this year was “Takahashi River Basin.”
Held at two venues—the lawn plaza and exhibition hall—the event brought together fun activities and delicious food, with not only exhibitions and sales but also workshops and food vendors.
Please see the images for details about the exhibitors.
The day of the event
When I arrived at the venue, the first thing I noticed was a colorful “DESIGN GOALs” sculpture.
It had a warm, handmade feel.
The lawn plaza where the sculpture was installed hosted food vendors and other stalls, while the exhibition hall featured exhibits other than food.
Sales and workshops were available at both venues.
Below, I’ll report on the food and drink, exhibitions and sales, and workshops.
Food and drink
Eleven vendors set up stalls, mainly restaurants serving ingredients produced in Okayama Prefecture.
You could enjoy cotton candy and coffee right there.
Drawn in by its juicy aroma, I bought some karaage.
All the food vendors offered takeout, so visitors who may find it difficult to eat in unfamiliar surroundings could enjoy the food, too.
There were lots of baked goods as well.
Exhibitions and sales
Exhibitions and sales of original artwork and products created through the DESIGN GOALs Project, which gives the event its name, were a great success at every venue.
I was drawn to the words “DESIGN GOALs” and came to the event hoping to meet a variety of creators. But from talking to people I met at the venue, I learned that many visitors had come looking forward to meeting their favorite creator and buying that creator’s work.
What stayed with me was that visitors said, “I support this person because I like their design,” rather than, “I support them because they have a disability.”
It was a place where people gathered who saw value in the creators’ “work,” not their “disabilities.”
It felt like a place that truly offered an entry point to an inclusive society.
Workshops
The workshops included not only booths featuring works by creators with disabilities, but also welfare nail care and hand healing, services usually offered to people with disabilities and older adults at welfare facilities.
I heard that many clients feel uplifted when their nails—always in their field of vision—are decorated, or when their sense of smell is stimulated, something they can experience even if they cannot move.
I remembered hearing, when I was a teacher at a special-needs school, that a former student who had grown up had “had their nails done during their free time on a day off, and their expression softened.” So I went to the booth for Candy Slow, a welfare nail-care service.
The nail technician who helped me is also a parent raising a child with a disability. They said they started offering welfare nail care because they “wanted not only to receive support, but also to be in a position to support someone else.”
Since I was in Kojima, I got denim-inspired nail art that day. The color brightened my fingertips and lifted my spirits, and I couldn’t resist taking a photo against the blue sky.
From the Writer
When I heard about an exhibition of works by creators with disabilities, I imagined that many of the visitors would also be people with disabilities or their supporters.
However, many visitors to the Kurashiki DESIGN GOALs Collection 2024 had simply come to enjoy the creators’ work. People were enjoying “looking, shopping, and eating,” just as they do at markets held around Kurashiki City.
The DESIGN GOALs Collection, an event where people with and without disabilities enjoy a day together and embody “living together” in the truest sense, is held every six months. The next event is scheduled for Monday, November 4, 2024 (national holiday).
Why not stop by and experience the uplifting atmosphere for yourself?
Kurashiki DESIGN GOALs Collection 2024 Information
| Name | Kurashiki DESIGN GOALs Collection 2024 |
|---|---|
| Date | May 3, 2024 (Friday), 10:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. |
| Location | 2-2-38 Ajino, Kojima, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Admission (tax included) | Free admission |
| Website | DESIGN GOALs PROJECT |
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