Ray Masaki

Ray Masaki is a Japanese-American graphic designer, writer, and educator in Tokyo who runs Studio RAN. He studied illustration at Parsons School of Design, type design at The Cooper Union, and received an MFA in graphic design from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. He teaches at the Professional Institute of International Fashion in Shinjuku, Tokyo. In 2021, Ray published Why is the salaryman carrying a surfboard? — a bilingual book about the history of systemic white supremacy and Westernisation in the Japanese design industry. He is It’s Nice That’s Tokyo correspondent.

Ray Masaki

The View From Tokyo: embracing imperfection and humour with heta-uma

How typography can make a more inclusive future

Broken Japanese: Why even a “respectful” homage to a country’s culture can be problematic

Broken Japanese: Exploring exoticisation and stereotyping in graphic design

Broken Japanese: Understanding privilege and cultural appropriation as a creative

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