More or Less Minimal

WEB
en.plusminuszero.jp

In 2003, Naoto Fukasawa launched the Japanese brand Plus Minus Zero with a small collection of housewares and consumer electronics meant to embody a design philosophy summed up in two words: “just right.” The resulting products are generally small, affordable, highly functional, and utterly simple but with occasional surprising and even sensuous details. (A curvaceous humidifier resembling a giant plastic doughnut has become something of a cult object.) Every year since, Fukasawa has released a new Plus Minus Zero collection, and the company has gradually added retail outlets throughout Asia and Europe (and one in Toronto, its only North American presence so far). The most recent releases—on view at Spazio Rossana Orlandi during last April’s Milan furniture fair—have focused largely on the kitchen. A line of “wire ware” includes a toast stand, a bread basket, an egg carton, and an egg cup. An aroma diffuser looks like a steaming laboratory flask. And aluminum pots and pans are refined versions of the virtually indestructible mainstays of commercial kitchens. Here’s hoping Fukasawa’s elegant acces-sories find their way to the United States soon.