Between May 7-20, 2025, eighteen RMIT Graphic Design students and two instructors traveled through Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka for an intensive study tour focused on traditional Japanese print crafts. We spent two weeks working alongside master practitioners at studios including Letter Boy, Albatro Print and Plant, Meiko Letterpress, Echos, Mano Works, Studio Press Club, and JAM, learning letterpress, risograph, screen printing, wood carving, and sign painting through hands-on collaboration.

What emerged from this experience is ST25: a 250-page publication that's entirely student-led. Every aspect (the writing, photography, illustrations, and design) comes from the students themselves. The book documents not just what we made, but how we learned to communicate across language barriers through the universal language of making. It's a testament to the generosity of our Japanese hosts and the creative breakthroughs that happen when you meet someone technically and creatively in a workshop space.

The production itself responds to the tour's print focus. Die-cut dust jackets, vacuum-formed logo motifs, and hand-sewn binding make the book a three-dimensional object that demands to be handled, much like the type, presses, and screens we worked with in Japan.

On November 20, 2025, we celebrated the publication's completion with an exhibition at RMIT's Greenroom space in Brunswick. The installation brought together the finished books, large-scale poster documentation, video from the studios, and student animations responding to their Japanese experiences. It was really wonderful to see two weeks of intensive making transformed into this comprehensive record. A proper conclusion to what started with collecting flyers in Shinjuku and ended with screen printing in Kyoto.

The photographs below document both the publication itself and the exhibition installation. This project represents not just a study tour, but a genuine cultural exchange built through shared craft.

Editorial Team

Lucas Rivera, Ren Fujii, Jansen Lye and Simon Rankin

Publication Designer

Lucas Rivera

Creative Direction

Ren Fujii

Contributors

Elizabeth, Jessie, Emily, Lili, Sarah, Zoe N, Lucas, Poppy, Martena, Mercedes, Shaye, Cara, Eva, Ney, Leah, Will, Zoe B, Ren, Simon and Jansen.

Installation photography by Elena Hogan - @elenafolio