Biography
Masamichi Katayama has designed over sixty retail outlets for Japanese clothing chain A Bathing Ape and overseen stores for the likes of Thom Browne , A.P.C., Fred Perry and Nike in New York, London and Moscow. He has also designed Uniqlo's flagships in New York, London, Berlin, Tokyo, Shanghai and Paris. Katayama has established himself as one of the foremost interior architects in retail. Renowned for his innovative and futuristic use of space, which included a conceptual redesign of Parisian concept store Colette in 2008, the Tokyo-based designer has achieved international acclaim and has been the subject of five books archiving his groundbreaking creations.
One of Katayama’s first projects was for a Tokyo-based street wear brand called Nowhere in 1993, owned by the same company as A Bathing Ape. Katayama’s daring use of stairs in the centre of the shop floor and lack of window displays proved an instant hit and secured his long-term collaboration for the company. Having initially co-founded H Design Associations with colleague Tsutomu Kurokawa in 1992, Katayama launched his own agency Wonderwall eight years later in 2000, quickly expanding his designer credentials beyond shop interiors and into furniture, lighting and office spaces. The interior design firm has completed over 200 projects worldwide and is known for its ability to conceptualise spaces, creating environments to connect with the consumer and occupant.
In March 2017, Wonderwall designed Nike’s Air Max installation at the Tokyo National Museum. Later that year, Wonderwall designed the first store for Yoon's Ambush in Tokyo. Wonderwall's design of The Emporium in Melbourne (completed in 2014) was selected as "9 of the World's Most Beautifully Designed Malls" in Architectural Digest. In 2018, Katayama worked on Japan House, a cultural centre occupying three floors of an art deco building in London which showcases the best of Japanese art, design, gastronomy and technology.
In 2011, Katayama was also appointed as a Professor at Musashino Art University’s Department of Scenography, Display and Fashion Design.