Japanese duo create interactive prints

Bookstores are closing, newspapers are folding and magazines are rushing to publish online. The stock of print media seems to be falling, but two Japanese designers are challenging that process with a newly released collection.

Masahiko Sato and Tatsuya Saito’s exhibit, ​“Putting Finger,” examines how viewers needn’t be passive bystanders where print is concerned; instead, their illustrations allow the onlooker to have a hand, quite literally, in the finished product.

The idea is simple, the illustrations don’t appear to be complete without the viewer’s interaction. Once you place your fingers on the appropriate ​‘hit areas’ the illustrations take on new tensions and dynamics. The interaction is completed by the touch of the viewer; quite a unique approach to print.

The series is on display at the DDD Gallery in Japan until April 26, 2014.