< img src= "https://www.designboom.com/twitterimages/uploads/2026/06/kinetic-installation-shaved-bonito-flakes-continuous-display-system-katsuo-gravity-uo-designboom-1200.jpg"alt=" "> a kinetic display screen system driven by shaved katsuobushi flakes Katsuo Gravity by UO is a long-term installation situated at Kayanoya Kyoto Gion, the flagship Kansai shop of a Japanese brand name concentrating on dashi products and food culture. The work is fixated a katsuobushi shaving device that transforms newly shaved bonito flakes into a constant kinetic display screen.
Katsuobushi, made from dried, fermented, and smoked bonito, is a crucial active ingredient in Japanese dashi, the foundational broth used throughout a wide variety of meals. In the setup, ultra-thin flakes (approximately 0.01 mm) are launched after shaving and exposed to air, where they wander and descend in irregular motion due to their lightness and fragility.
Below the falling flakes, a circular platform gathers the product. As the accumulation increases, the platform slowly tilts, operating in a way comparable to a shishi-odoshi. When a limit is reached, the gathered flakes are launched, resetting the cycle. The system develops a constant interaction between dispersion, build-up, and release.
each katsuobushi flake is so delicate that it ends up being almost translucent in the light|all images thanks to UO a sensory system linking food preparation and spatial style The setup highlights two material conditions of katsuobushi: the near-weightless behavior of private flakes and the development of mass through aggregation. These contrasting states are made noticeable through motion and mechanical action within the installation.
Freshly shaved katsuobushi is collected by personnel from beneath the setup and utilized directly in the preparation of dashi and meals served in the store, linking the procedure to daily cooking practice instead of presenting it as a simply visual system.
The installation by UO innovative studio aligns with Kayanoya’s principle of ‘experiencing dashi culture through all five senses,’ incorporating material procedure, cooking, and spatial experience within a single functional framework.
as the katsuobushi flakes slowly accumulate, the circular phase tilts under their weight, permitting them to fall completely installed in the shop, the installation continues to produce freshly shaved katsuobushi