Stress Points: Policy and Practice in the Japanese Furniture Industry, 1890-1970
Lead Research Organisation:
Royal College of Art
Department Name: School of Humanities
Abstract
'Stress Points' explores the impact of public and private sector initiatives to nurture new wooden furniture industries for regional economic growth on the actual development of furniture design and manufacturing in Japan, from the onset of Japan's imperial expansion in Asia in the 1890s to postwar economic recovery in the 1960s.
Previous research has allowed me to argue that new economic and political policies in the 1890s brought about changes in attitudes towards wood as a commodity and material in Japan, and contributed to the emergence of specialist furniture designers and regional furniture manufacturing industries distinct from extant vernacular carpentry workshops. The project tests and expands on this hypothesis through archival and oral history research in Japan, and disseminates it through a single-authored book, journal articles and talks for specialist and general audiences.
Key issues include the relationship between early state-sponsored wood materials research, woodworking education and export policy c. 1890-1910, and the relationship between modernist plywood furniture, regional economic development, Japanese industrial policy for postwar reconstruction and American Cold War policy, in the period 1945-65. I pay particular attention to the relationship between centralized policy and programme initiatives and regional industry, with manufacturers in north-eastern Japan for my case studies.
Ultimately, the project seeks to answer the following research questions:
1) How did the nature and extent of local conditions, including materials and crafts traditions, affect designers' and manufacturers' interpretation and implementation of national policies, technological advancements and social trends in design in key regions for wooden furniture manufacturing?
2) What was the nature and extent of the impact of centralized state and local policy on design and manufacturing in peripheral areas in Japan?
3) What was the impact of regional and global geopolitics such as European and Japanese colonial expansion in East Asia and the Cold War on designers', manufacturers' and policy-makers' decisions regarding the promotion of furniture design and manufacturing, and on the actual development of the industry?
The answers to these questions will contribute new knowledge to design history and modern Japanese history, as well as expanding the current scope of concern addressed in both disciplines. They will also provide case studies, comparisons and analytical methods for people working with business, innovation and design strategy today in the public and private sectors in the UK and abroad.
Previous research has allowed me to argue that new economic and political policies in the 1890s brought about changes in attitudes towards wood as a commodity and material in Japan, and contributed to the emergence of specialist furniture designers and regional furniture manufacturing industries distinct from extant vernacular carpentry workshops. The project tests and expands on this hypothesis through archival and oral history research in Japan, and disseminates it through a single-authored book, journal articles and talks for specialist and general audiences.
Key issues include the relationship between early state-sponsored wood materials research, woodworking education and export policy c. 1890-1910, and the relationship between modernist plywood furniture, regional economic development, Japanese industrial policy for postwar reconstruction and American Cold War policy, in the period 1945-65. I pay particular attention to the relationship between centralized policy and programme initiatives and regional industry, with manufacturers in north-eastern Japan for my case studies.
Ultimately, the project seeks to answer the following research questions:
1) How did the nature and extent of local conditions, including materials and crafts traditions, affect designers' and manufacturers' interpretation and implementation of national policies, technological advancements and social trends in design in key regions for wooden furniture manufacturing?
2) What was the nature and extent of the impact of centralized state and local policy on design and manufacturing in peripheral areas in Japan?
3) What was the impact of regional and global geopolitics such as European and Japanese colonial expansion in East Asia and the Cold War on designers', manufacturers' and policy-makers' decisions regarding the promotion of furniture design and manufacturing, and on the actual development of the industry?
The answers to these questions will contribute new knowledge to design history and modern Japanese history, as well as expanding the current scope of concern addressed in both disciplines. They will also provide case studies, comparisons and analytical methods for people working with business, innovation and design strategy today in the public and private sectors in the UK and abroad.
Planned Impact
The research analyses the effects of policy and state and private investment on regional economic development and global market competitiveness through technology transfer, the exploitation of local resources and the development of new local creative and manufacturing industries. It therefore has clear potential benefits for strategists for local and regional creative industries, government agencies concerned with technology transfer and the connection between local industry and international market success and local manufacturers in the UK, Japan and internationally.
Given the potential usefulness of the research, clear and direct dissemination of relevant findings in a way which foregrounds applicable conclusions will be key to the project's success. The case studies consider new industries based on raw materials and cheap labour such as those which powered British economic development in the Industrial Revolution, rather than the creative industries developing in areas like Dundee and the North-East which draw on intellectual human capital and HEIs, but many themes discussed remain relevant for the UK today. They will offer insight into a variety of policy and funding drivers for development, including initiatives from central government agencies, local governments and private enterprise. The efficacy of routes and incentives chosen to establish these new industries-compulsory and specialist education, apprenticeships, exhibitions, academy-industry research networks, social enterprise schemes and grants for skills acquisition, technology upgrades and new enterprise, etc.-will also be analysed.
Significantly, the case studies explore furniture design's function as an earlier creative industry connecting intellectual work, creativity and production for local and global markets. Now, as the government initiates its massive reconsideration of drivers and mechanisms for local and regional economic development and both state and private sector scale up efforts to maintain British pre-eminence in creative industries globally, the case studies may well provide useful comparison and suggest potential strategies.
My relationship with the Department of Innovation Design Engineering (IDE) at the RCA will help me share findings directly with potential public and private sector beneficiaries. After returning to teaching following the Fellowship's completion, I will share results with IDE (joint-RCA and Imperial College London) students, many of whom are emerging entrepreneurs or professionals in design for local development, and ask IDE colleagues active professionally in these areas to suggest key individuals and agencies who might be interested in the research results. More specifically, I will suggest a public seminar on design and local development to DesignLondon (RCA-Imperial College) to reach a broader audience of design, business and industry professionals.
To share findings on the relationship between materials research and design, I will propose a presentation at a regular event of the Materials and Design Exchange (MADE), a TSB Knowledge Transfer Network housed at the RCA and an article in the Network's eponymous magazine. I will consult colleagues within the RCA's 'Materials for Living' research hub, of which I am a member, for further venues for dissemination.
Given the project's close analysis of its Japanese case studies, the research will also potentially benefit similar groups and issues in Japan. On my final trip to Japan in June 2012, I will share results with the manufacturers and design firms who give their time, archival access and ideas during the research. I will also propose two seminars for audiences comprising members of the furniture industry, relevant government agencies and design educators. 'Pathways to Impact' gives the names and significance of specific organisations.
Given the potential usefulness of the research, clear and direct dissemination of relevant findings in a way which foregrounds applicable conclusions will be key to the project's success. The case studies consider new industries based on raw materials and cheap labour such as those which powered British economic development in the Industrial Revolution, rather than the creative industries developing in areas like Dundee and the North-East which draw on intellectual human capital and HEIs, but many themes discussed remain relevant for the UK today. They will offer insight into a variety of policy and funding drivers for development, including initiatives from central government agencies, local governments and private enterprise. The efficacy of routes and incentives chosen to establish these new industries-compulsory and specialist education, apprenticeships, exhibitions, academy-industry research networks, social enterprise schemes and grants for skills acquisition, technology upgrades and new enterprise, etc.-will also be analysed.
Significantly, the case studies explore furniture design's function as an earlier creative industry connecting intellectual work, creativity and production for local and global markets. Now, as the government initiates its massive reconsideration of drivers and mechanisms for local and regional economic development and both state and private sector scale up efforts to maintain British pre-eminence in creative industries globally, the case studies may well provide useful comparison and suggest potential strategies.
My relationship with the Department of Innovation Design Engineering (IDE) at the RCA will help me share findings directly with potential public and private sector beneficiaries. After returning to teaching following the Fellowship's completion, I will share results with IDE (joint-RCA and Imperial College London) students, many of whom are emerging entrepreneurs or professionals in design for local development, and ask IDE colleagues active professionally in these areas to suggest key individuals and agencies who might be interested in the research results. More specifically, I will suggest a public seminar on design and local development to DesignLondon (RCA-Imperial College) to reach a broader audience of design, business and industry professionals.
To share findings on the relationship between materials research and design, I will propose a presentation at a regular event of the Materials and Design Exchange (MADE), a TSB Knowledge Transfer Network housed at the RCA and an article in the Network's eponymous magazine. I will consult colleagues within the RCA's 'Materials for Living' research hub, of which I am a member, for further venues for dissemination.
Given the project's close analysis of its Japanese case studies, the research will also potentially benefit similar groups and issues in Japan. On my final trip to Japan in June 2012, I will share results with the manufacturers and design firms who give their time, archival access and ideas during the research. I will also propose two seminars for audiences comprising members of the furniture industry, relevant government agencies and design educators. 'Pathways to Impact' gives the names and significance of specific organisations.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Sarah Teasley (Principal Investigator) |
| Description | Key findings include both important correctives to the historical understanding of twentieth century Japanese history and - of interest to a much broader audience, presumably - findings around policy implementation and the relationship between policymakers and local communities. FINDINGS ON MODERN JAPANESE HISTORY (SAMPLE ONLY) - The importance of regional design and technology research institutes, nationally networked and locally embedded, for economic growth and innovation in the twentieth century. -The varied impact of the Allied Occupation of Japan (1945-52) on local and regional manufacturing - through individual connections as well as policy. - The importance of a centralised industrial policy, beginning in the 1890s, for SMEs growth and innovation throughout the twentieth century - but through means such as technical education and local engagement, rather than the large policy drivers largely discussed to date (e.g. Chalmers-Johnson 1982). FINDINGS ON POLICYMAKING FOR COMMUNITY SUSTAINABILITY - Resilience and capacity are important. But survival and adaption can mean many things. And do communities always want to survive and grow? - Build community ownership of policy-making and implementation into the process: buy-in through empowerment as well as capitalising on local knowledge. - Commitment: less is more, if more could lead to empty promises or be affected by politics - Importance of education and KE, and of long-term govt-community-industry partnerships - Comparisons are helpful: resilience occurs across geographies and historical periods. - Joined-up thinking and monitoring throughout policy design and implementation is essential. FINDINGS ON MECHANISMS FOR STIMULATING INDUSTRIAL COMMUNITIES' ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY Local and regional research institutes connected in a national network and that bridge universities (advanced and/or blue sky research and international developments) and SMEs (local industry, applications) can be an effective and resilient mechanism for training and KT/KE, especially when connected locally in a research-industry-FE triangle as well as nationally, to other institutes and HE. FINDINGS FOR MANUFACTURERS AND OTHER INDUSTRIES • Seek out expertise and don't be shy about it. • Voraciously consider bringing in new technology, but also take advantage of the older skills and methods in your work force. • Acknowledge strengths and acknowledge the strengths of others. • Be aware of resources in the local environment - material, geographical and cultural. • Be mindful of the importance of access to researchers and research institutes - whether at universities, further education colleges, companies in complementary industries or regional research institutes. • Encourage long-term thinking on the part of government / business research funders. Blue- sky research has value in bringing ideas and connections to industry collaborations. • Maintain curiosity about materials and the processes - encourage a culture of experimentation and questioning around materials and business opportunities. • Don't be afraid to bring in young designers and engineers with wild or unconventional ideas, or to support their development. • Look ahead and think about markets that haven't yet emerged, making what your company and people are good at your selling point. • Diversify, but diversify strategically so that your core image is clear. • Cultivate and maintain connections with other interesting people in different fields, local and international. Think about how you might be able to collaborate with them. • Pay strong attention to corporate culture, employee culture and worker satisfaction - especially if you are in the manufacturing sector and founded on craft skills as well as automation. • Maintain trust, even in times of uncertainty - allowing for experimentation, giving people the room to play over the long term, and recognising that you may be able to capitalise on that later on, even if you're not technically able to do so immediately. |
| Exploitation Route | Findings that can be taken forward and put to use by others include research questions, case studies, data and impact mechanisms. RESEARCH QUESTIONS: Formal dissemination (print, talks) and informal conversations with stakeholders in the UK, Europe and Japan subsequent to the grant's completion have allowed me to refine the research questions in a way that presents the research's relevance for communities, industry organisations and policymakers today - as well as for historians and other academic researchers. The new questions, which continue to frame my own research can be summarised as: - What are the key elements of an industrial system that is economically and socially sustainable in the long-term and makes a genuine economic and social contribution to local communities? - How can effective and productive relationships between different elements of this system be fostered by individuals and organisations in industry, communities and government at multiple levels? Alternatively, they can be described as: How do manufacturers and designers adapt to changing conditions, processes, materials and technologies? • How do these shape the built environment and daily life? • How can lessons from the past make today's design and manufacturing better? CASE STUDIES: - Positive feedback from community and industry representatives and from local, regional and national level policymakers in the UK, Japan and elsewhere indicates that the historical and geographical comparisons provided by the case studies can be useful heuristic tools for situation analysis, network mapping, open-ended thinking and decision-making today, around drivers and facilitators for sustainable community empowerment in post-industrial locations. The qualitative research complements quantitative research provided by economic geographers and other social scientists, and the narratives and visual material easily invite personal comparisons and engagement on a more immediate level than that presented by economic data alone. DATA: - The role of local and regional design and technology organisations in fostering innovation, communication and engagement with policymaking in industrial communities is a topic receiving attention in policy, academia, industry and the third sector alike. See for example the EPRSC/ESRC-funded project Future Makespaces in Re-Distributed Manufacturing, and interest in makespaces' potential for provoking innovation more generally. Data on the effectiveness of earlier historical instances of these organisations, particularly around implementation and community engagement, is highly relevant for these decisions and actions today. - Further comparisons between the impact of technical education during the historical period studied and policymaking, implementation and experience of technical education in the UK today, including apprenticeships, HE, FE and life-long learning, is an important aspect to be further explored. - Similarly, research findings around the impact of various aspects of industrial policy, and of their implementation, can be useful as heuristic tools and comparisons for decision-making today, whether at local level e.g. LEPs, national level e.g. Innovate UK, DLGC or Cabinet Office localism teams. IMPACT MECHANISMS - The strong reception to the research as a heuristic tool and comparison, and simply as an example of how the kind of actions and policies being designed and implemented today played out when implemented in another time and place, clearly indicates that this kind of historical comparative research can be welcome by policymakers, industry and community representatives, if only historians would communicate their findings. Communication mechanisms including writing, oral and visual presentation style and identifying how to present findings to different audiences can be useful for other historians seeking to increase impact of their own work. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Creative Economy,Education,Leisure Activities, including Sports, Recreation and Tourism,Government, Democracy and Justice,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| Description | It is difficult to say exactly how findings have been used, however I can detail how policymakers and industry representatives have requested access to them and how I have actively presented findings to them. During the research process, policymakers at the local and regional level in Japan requested research results, to use as comparative heuristic tools for policymaking around industrial community-building and stimulation today. They also requested consultations and feedback on current policy and community initiatives. Similarly, a representative from a key manufacturing supply chain industry organisation conducted an interview, to be circulated to membership through the organisation's newsletter. Within the UK, findings have been disseminated to policymakers at the national level through participation as a speaker in an event at the All-Party Parliamentary Manufacturing Group, through publication of research findings in the All-Party Parliamentary Design & Innovation Group - to industry as well as to government, and in participation and research findings' distribution in an AHRC/Cabinet Office-organised event on community resilience. I have not requested specific reports on the impact of these presentations and dialogues - and in some cases they would be difficult to gauge without a survey of entire organisations' memberships - but would hope they have helped decision-makers and implementers to observe their own decisions and actions from a new perspective. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2012 |
| Sector | Creative Economy,Education,Government, Democracy and Justice,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology |
| Impact Types | Cultural,Societal,Economic,Policy & public services |
| Description | Bucks New University global furniture symposium |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | I presented a 20-minute academic paper at 'Global Furniture', an academic-industry conference on the present and future of national and local furniture industries in a globalised economy, organised by the National School of Furniture at Bucks New University. The international group of presenters included several historians as well as furniture designers, educators and representatives from industry associations in the UK and overseas. The paper drew on fieldwork with furniture manufacturers and prefectural and local government small industry (crafts, furniture, housewares) support divisions in Shizuoka, a city in central Japan. Shizuoka's furniture industry dates back to the seventeenth century, but 80% of firms have folded since 1980, due to national economic stagnation, offshore competition, changing consumer tastes and distribution systems, and an ageing workforce. Some firms, however, are thriving afresh, thanks to innovative product development, distribution and market strategies. This paper took the Shizuoka furniture industry's decline and transformation as a case study for understanding the impact of market conditions, environmental regulations, industrial policy and global trade networks on furniture as a local industry in advanced industrial nations. Based on interviews with manufacturers, local and regional government officials, industry organisations and consultant designers, site visits and research into industry publications and grounded in two larger perspectives - the social, economic and cultural history of Shizuoka's furniture industry and Japanese furniture industry conditions nationally, now - the paper identified key actors in the Shizuoka 'ecosystem'. Ultimately, it argued for the need for stakeholders to cooperate in developing local and regional industrial policy aimed at supporting sustainable industry as part of sustainable communities - whether in Japan, the UK or elsewhere. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://bucks.ac.uk/content/newsroom/2013/global-furniture-issues-to-be-examined-at-buckinghamshire-n... |
| Description | Local government, growing SMEs |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | This panel/roundtable discussion, organised by the All-Party Parliamentary Manufacturing Group (APMG), convened a panel of MPs, local councillors and experts to discuss the role that local government can play in supporting and promoting the sustainable growth of manufacturing SMEs in the UK. I was the sole academic participant on the panel, and presented key findings from the AHRC-supported research into the implementation and impact of national, regional and local industrial policy on small furniture manufacturers in postwar Japan to an audience of MPs, local councillors, representatives from Local Enterprise Partnerships, small and medium-sized business owners, trade organisation representatives and others from government and industry, nationally. Amongst the key findings listed in the APMG's own summary (www.policyconnect.org.uk/apmg/events/local-government-growing-smes), findings I offered included: multi-level disconnect between levels of government and the need to coordinate across levels for policy and implementation alike; the variability of local structures and strategies, which requires flexible implementation and a strategy that can be tailored to local needs, rather than 'one size fits all'; the importance of personal engagement to connect businesses with support networks; and the fundamental importance of good skills training, beginning in primary education. Other attendees seconded these recommendations in their own presentations and in ensuing discussion, and expressed appreciation for the international comparison and historical perspective on contemporary issues for UK industry. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | Pause/Play: Taking Time in Digital Manufacturing |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | This panel discussion was part of Super Talks, a series of free, public and well-publicised events curated as part of the 2013 London Design Festival and held at Tent London, a major Festival venue (www.tentlondon.co.uk/super-talks). The panel investigated the impact, actuality and future of digital manufacturing technologies such as additive manufacturing (3D printing), 3D scanning and advanced modelling software. I was invited to participate in the panel as a historian, alongside cutting-edge digital designers and manufacturers, and asked to present comparative case studies and insights for current technologies and their potential social and economic impact, based on my research into 'old new' manufacturing technologies for furniture in the twentieth century. In a brief presentation preceding the panel discussion, I outlined key findings from my research into how firms have successfully adapted new technologies for production in specific local conditions, alongside existing technologies and social systems, and argued that historical comparisons and parallels are an effective way to see through 'hype' and gain perspective on the impact and potential futures of emerging technologies now. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.londondesignfair.co.uk/super-talks-speakers |
| Description | Presentation at SKOPE Oxford |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Following a November 2012 appearance on BBC Radio 4 Start the Week, I was invited to present the findings from the AHRC-funded research into design and technology education as part of local manufacturing ecosystems at the Employers Forum of the ESRC Centre on Skills, Knowledge and Organisational Performance (SKOPE), at Oxford University. This full-length paper, presented to a mixed audience of social scientists, SME owners and heads of training for major British public and private organisations, offered comparative historical precedents for effective collaboration between regional research institutions and local manufacturing communities. The paper offered two case studies, researched in AHRC-supported archival work and fieldwork with manufacturers and prefectural and local government industrial research institutes and manufacturing support teams in two key furniture manufacturing locations in Japan, Tendo in northern Japan and Shizuoka in central Japan. Both case studies were presented as qualitative complements to existing quantitative research, and identified key and minor actors in the industrial organisation of each region, looking at the particular mechanisms that enabled interaction between policy-makers, policy implementers and manufacturers in particular, and at the outcomes of those interactions. Specifically, the paper tracked the personal interactions and technology transfer between manufacturers and nearby industrial research institutes. Based on the case studies, the paper argued that nationally-networked research institutes and universities can be an effective and resilient mechanism for training and KT/KE, especially when connected locally in a research-industry-FE triangle as well as nationally, to other institutes and to HE. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.skope.ox.ac.uk/events/2013/04/23/employers-forum |
| Description | Start the Week (BBC Radio 4), Art and Design with Anthony Gormley and Ron Arad |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | As described on its website, the BBC Radio 4 programme Start the Week Start the Week 'sets the cultural agenda for the week ahead, with high-profile guests discussing the ideas behind their work in the fields of art, literature, film, science, history, society and politics'. In November 2012, I was invited onto the show, as part of a panel on the future of art and design education in the UK. In addition to offering arguments from another then-recently published book chapter on the future of art and design education, I presented key findings from the Early Career Fellowship research into design and technical education in early twentieth-century Japan, a time of intensive research and development into design pedagogy, vocational education and the role of art and design education from primary school onwards in the standard national curriculum. Following the broadcast, I received over a dozen emails from programme listeners who were encouraged and stimulated by my research-based comments, as well as an invitation to present the findings from the historical research into early twentieth-century J |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
| URL | http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01nx5jv |
| Description | V&A Friday late on Future Furniture |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | At this public roundtable, part of the 'Friday Late' free event series at the Victoria and Albert Museum, I joined well-known furniture designers, manufacturers and design critics to discuss the future of the furniture industry, addressing the current conditions, directions and challenges of designing, making, distributing and consuming furniture in the UK and internationally. Each participant gave a five-minute position presentation based on their work. My contribution offered key findings from fieldwork and archival research in the furniture manufacturing community in Shizuoka, a city in central Japan whose furniture industry has seen severe decline since 1980 due to factors including offshore competition, an ageing workforce and changing consumer tastes. While the environment for Shizuoka furniture manufacturers remains challenging, some manufacturers have identified innovative product development, design and marketing strategies, often drawing on practices and traditions established in the mid-twentieth century, at the industry's heyday. My presentation and contributions to the roundtable discussion argued that the furniture industry can learn from close attention to its past, and that the history of furniture must look at economics, geopolitics and the history of technology, not simply at style. The roundtable filled the Museum's Hochhauser Auditorium to capacity, with an audience of several hundred students, young designers and members of the general public. Overall, there were 3417 visitors to the overall Friday Late event. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | V&A Future and technocracy workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | This 20-minute academic paper, 'Local futures and technocratic dreams: When policy meets the makers', was presented at the Victoria and Albert Museum, as part of a two-day workshop on 'technocracy, expertise and the future' organised to support research for the Museum's forthcoming major exhibition 'The Future: A History' (2017). The workshop was funded by the AHRC as part of the 'Care for the Future' programme, and organised by the V&A in collaboration with the Goethe Institut. The paper drew on my research into the impact and implementation of national design, innovation and technology policies for small-scale manufacturing on furniture companies in mid-twentieth century Japan. I offered two case studies in how industrial policy aimed at intensifying economic activity in local regions, and by doing so improving national GDP and international standing as well as local conditions, were received, perceived and undertaken 'on the ground'. Through the case studies, the paper presented two major arguments (key findings) from the entire research. The first concerns historical inquiry: I argued that research must combine broad and intimate perspectives to understand social and economic interactions, looking both at political economy on a large scale and at some of the micro-scale interactions between people, things, ideas and techniques provoked by attempts to implement industrial policy locally.The second was aimed at policy-makers: I argued that since historical evidence demonstrates that the impact of policies will vary according to local conditions and firms' individual circumstances, policies that allow flexibility in local implementation are more likely to succeed in motivating firms to engage with state support for innovation (e.g. the TSB today). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |