Akiko Hayashi
Representative Executive / Creative Director
Akiko Hayashi graduated from Nanzan University (Nagoya, Japan) in 1992 with a degree in British and American Studies and a focus in Intercultural Communication. In 1990, she studied ad design for one year at the University of San Francisco in California. After graduating, she worked for Takara, the Japanese toy company. She then became a graphic designer for the design production firm, AD ROAD Inc. She switched from print media design to web design, and in 1997, was hired to be the exclusive web designer / art director for avex network, a major record company. At avex, she designed the official websites for both the company and its artists. In 1999, Hayashi became an independent web designer, founding ALUMINUM with Shunsuke Koyama.
Hayashi’s expertise is especially pronounced in her work with Photoshop, and her writings on the subject are published in numerous Photoshop related books and magazines.
Shunsuke Koyama
Art Director
Shunsuke Koyama graduated from Kuwasawa Design Institute and embarked on a career in graphic design as an employee of ASCII, a publishing company, where he created graphics for magazines and other print media. In 1988, he was officially appointed as Editorial Designer and Art Director.
In 1992, Koyama moved to Paris, France, where he spent a year absorbing Europe’s traditional and contemporary cultural influences. After returning to Japan, he became an independent designer and established ALUMINUM with Akiko Hayashi. His design aesthetics combine a distinctive European sensibility with a more delicate application of traditional Japanese typography. His unique work fuses the artistic essences of both Japanese and European cultures.
