Though craft revivalism and artisanal practice is all the rage these days, Japan-based Nosigner has taken it somewhere else, working with HK, who has access to the knowledge base of the craftsmen who first produced artificial pearls in Izumi, to create magnetic ones.

They function similarly to Buckyballs, except they're not like ball bearings at all, but milky and delicate, for ears, fingers and wrists. We love this project because instead of worrying about so-called "authenticity," it investigates an imitative industrial process as an artisanal one in a very genuine, smart way.

The great thing is, you don't have to know the story behind the project to appreciate it—it's rich enough in material and formal subtleties to stand alone, sublimely.

Showing this weekend at Design Tide Tokyo.

via spoon and tamago