Biko Giken Co., Ltd.: First collaboration between Biko Giken and architect Satoshi Itasaka, with limited-time exhibit in Tokyo / “Fungal Mirror” exhibited at DESIGNART TOKYO 2025
Biko Giken Co., Ltd. Press Release: October 29, 2025 Biko Giken and architect Satoshi Itasaka collaborate for the first time, exhibiting their work for a limited time in Tokyo / “Fungal Mirror” exhibited at DESIGNART TOKYO 2025 “Microbiome Mirror”: A new challenge from industrial metalworking technology to art and building materials
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https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/172241/1/172241-1-718d27fc92271644519c0188fd0ce00f-1271×1271.jpg The appearance changes depending on the light color. Biko Giken Co., Ltd., based in Minokamo City, Gifu Prefecture, is pleased to announce the opening of the art project “Microbiome Mirror” by architect Satoshi Itasaka (representative of the design labo). The company will provide technical support for the production of “Mirror” and exhibit it at DESIGNART TOKYO 2025. Applying its unique 3D spin polishing technology, developed in the automotive and precision machinery fields, the company has achieved a new form of expression by making the shape of bacteria appear on the metal surface. This new creation will be launched from Minokamo as an attempt to expand industrial technology into the realms of art and building materials. Concept Our bodies are made up of approximately 37 trillion cells, but even more bacteria live symbiotically with us than there are cells. This mirror is an experimental piece that gives form to these invisible entities. Using Biko Giken’s embossed 3D spin polishing technique, a pattern based on the shapes of microorganisms is engraved on the mirror surface as a finely textured surface. Depending on the angle of the light and the viewing distance, the image appears and disappears repeatedly, and the “silhouettes of bacteria” appear to flicker in response to the viewer’s movements. What is reflected in the mirror is both “oneself” and “the others that make up oneself.” This work proposes a new art material that uses technology to reconsider the relationship between life and matter, and between nature and the artificial. Technical background This work was created using Biko Giken’s proprietary 3D spin polishing technology. This technology, typically used for high-precision finishing of industrial parts, was adapted for artistic expression in collaboration with the design labo. By controlling the reflection of the metal surface at the nano level, a “lifelike expression” is created in the light and shadow. This initiative is a new attempt to combine industrial technology and art, with future applications in building materials and spatial design in mind. Using this project as a starting point, Biko Giken will promote the social implementation of “technology that creates beauty” through collaborations with artists and architects. Exhibition overview Exhibition name: “Still Growing” Title of work: “Mirror of
bacteria/Microbiome Mirror” Dates: Friday, October 31, 2025 – Sunday, November 9, 2025 Venue: MEDIA DEPARTMENT TOKYO (19-3 Udagawacho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo) Organizer: DESIGNART TOKYO Executive Committee Official website: https://www.designart.jp/designarttokyo2025/ Work Summary: Microbiome Mirror “Microbiome Mirror” is a work that challenges us to reexamine our perspective on the resident microbes that coexist with us. Images of minute bacteria carved into the mirror’s surface overlap with the viewer’s face, evoking a symbiotic perspective against the current trend of solely focusing on
sterilization. “Microbiome Mirror (Kin no Kagami) invites us to reexamine the way we look at the commensal bacteria that live with us. Delicate, pre-engraved bacterial forms on the mirror’s surface align with the viewer’s reflection, prompting a perspective of coexistence in the face of a disinfection-first trend.” Size: 60cmφ Material: Mirror-polished stainless steel Inquiries regarding this matter Biko Giken Co., Ltd. Public Relations Officer: Wada Shōgo E-mail: s-wada@bikogiken.co.jp Address: 2-3-33 Nozasamachi, Minokamo City, Gifu Prefecture URL: https://www.bikogiken.co.jp/ We will be providing in-person information at our booth from October 31st to November 1st, 2025. Additional Information (Intent of the Works and Technical Documents) “Microbiome Mirror” is an experimental metal work created as an extension of the “Still Growing” series. The polishing marks on the metal surface, which continues to grow like the trees of a forest or cells, emerge as a pattern symbolizing the vitality of bacteria. The fine optical structure of the surface, created by Biko Giken’s 3D spin polishing, is not just decorative, but suggests the possibility of it being a “new material that reflects emotions in the building material itself.” Copyright ©
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