Dennitsa Gabrakova | Responding to Tsutomu Toda's Design Theory Beyond the Framework of Academic Papers—Explorers of Graphic Culture: Part 3
Researcher Dennitsa Gabrakova explores Tsutomu Toda's "Paper Thinking" by linking it to Karatani's theories and creating collaborative works beyond academia.Summary
This article introduces the research of Dennitsa Gabrakova, a Bulgarian literary researcher and recipient of the DNP Foundation's Academic Research Grant. Her research focuses on the design criticism of the late graphic designer Tsutomu Toda (1951-2020), particularly his concept of "Paper Thinking" (紙的思考), analyzed through his essays in the magazine *d/SIGN* and his dialogues. The study compares Toda's ideas with the theories of literary critic and philosopher Kojin Karatani (especially *The Origin of Japanese Literature*), examining Toda's exploration of methods for "decline and retreat" and the role of "paper" and "flatness" as a counterpoint to the limits of perspectival order.
Gabrakova's research extends beyond traditional academic papers; she engaged in collaborative creation with musicians, photographers, and cinematographers to produce a prototype book compiling Toda's words. This practical endeavor aimed to reproduce the fragmented nature and "frailty" of Toda's thinking, utilizing methods like translation and collage to explore a vision of "empathetic ecology" that transcends conventional academic frameworks.
(Source：artscape)