Masaki Iwabuchi (b. 1984, Tokyo, Japan) is a New York-based interdisciplinary designer, artist, and futurist. He has expertise in Speculative Design and envisions future scenarios, socio-technical visions, and beautiful dreams through various media: photography, writing, video, and interactive prototypes. He received his BE and MA degrees from the University of Tokyo and an MFA in Design and Technology from the Parsons School of Design. In 2019, he was selected as the Design Researcher in Residence at KYOTO Design Lab, Kyoto Institute of Technology. In 2023, he served on a jury at the Good Living 2050, an international vision design contest.
Masaki believes we need alternative visions and worldviews to overcome numerous wicked problems in this century, such as climate change, forced migration, political and social polarization, etc. Therefore, he is interested in challenging our societal structures, vested interests, and Cartesian belief systems through his works. In doing so, he provokes his audience to shake off old habits, patterns, and mindsets and cultivates new ways of seeing the world differently.
Since 2021, Masaki Iwabuchi has been a visiting associate professor at Tohoku University, Japan, teaching engineering students speculative design and vision design. Most recently, he has proactively applied his artistic sensibilities in both the realms of academics and business. Masaki holds many lectures and workshops to shape positive future scenarios collaboratively with students, citizens, and business professionals.
Speculative Art is a broad umbrella that encompasses various concepts. One of the critical aspects is the exploration of future scenarios. From environmental changes to technological advancements, artists speculate and reflect on different possibilities in their work. Another essential concept is the use of interdisciplinary approaches. Artists often incorporate scientific, technological, and philosophical ideas, creating a unique blend of art and knowledge. Speculative Art also encourages critical thinking, challenging us to question our assumptions and explore different perspectives.
He visualizes speculative worldviews through photography and video. His works have been exhibited worldwide in exhibitions and art events, including the Recto Verso Gallery in Tokyo, the Stockholm Art Book Fair, and the NYC Media Lab Demo Expo. Additionally, He has been actively systemizing his artistic processes and publishing research papers in interaction design, speculative design, and transition design. Design Research Society, ACM SIGGRAPH, and many others accepted his papers.
The concept of Speculative Design was proposed in the book Speculative Everything in 2013, and Speculative Art was extended to the design field. It represents a method of manifesting possibilities and envisioning novel ways of perceiving the world through designed artifacts. It doesn't aim to predict the future but rather explore radical ways in which the future could unfold and alter current human behaviors to reach preferable futures. Therefore, Masaki experiments with and unpacks the politics, meanings, and assumptions behind the aesthetic representation of alternative worlds using various media: video, photography, writing, UI prototypes, etc.
Mainly in the digital product design realm, he leads projects to research future trends, co-create speculative worldviews of how the world could be, and visualize innovative concepts with product teams. Also, he prototypes these emerging concepts considering desirability, viability, and feasibility. This work helps organizations anticipate possible scenarios and make decisions for desired futures.
Currently, as a Lead User Experience Designer/Futurist at JPMorgan Chase, he leads strategic projects with product team leaders. Through a forward-thinking workshop, he envisions future scenarios and maps out potential opportunities. Then he seamlessly prototypes visionary concepts in collaboration with technologists to experience them in the user's context and make strategic decisions confidently. Prior to the current role, he was a Principal Service Designer & Developer at Teknikio, EdTech startup in Brooklyn. He led the service ecosystem design and front-end development of a STEM Education Platform for COVID-19 Remote Learning. Before that, he was a Product Design Lead at IBM for ten years and had industry business and design leadership experience.
In the 21st century, tragic wars are still raging around the world, and no national or international organization can point us toward a preferred future. It is hard to be optimistic, but we must be since we cannot rely on futures given to us from the “top.”
Therefore, he proactively creates a space and holds a participatory workshop to generate optimistic future scenarios together. Masaki’s lifelong mission is to pass the baton to the 22nd century by enhancing people's imagination and provoking them to think about preferred futures. This approach is called Artistic Intervention and has been adopted by forward-thinking tech companies, universities, and others to create new visions and concepts.