Startbahn to Organize and Hold an NFT Fashion Exhibition With 5 Japanese Brands Including ANREALAGE and TOMO KOIZUMI

Startbahn, Inc. (Headquarters: Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Representative Director: Taihei Shii, hereinafter “Startbahn”) is collaborating with the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (hereinafter “METI”) to hold an exhibition for the Japanese fashion industry utilizing blockchain and NFT technology. Digital visuals will be provided by five fashion brands such as ANREALAGE and TOMO KOIZUMI, with PARCEL (Nihonbashi, Tokyo) acting as the main venue from March 4th (Fri) to March 13th (Sun), 2022. The exhibition is titled "SIZELESS TWIN", which will be both a physical and digital exhibition. Using “Startrail”, the blockchain infrastructure built by Startbahn, we propose diversification of sales contents by brands and designers, long-term work management, and profit return.




Startbahn and its infrastructure "Startrail" support the authenticity and reliability of artworks and the inheritance of value by utilizing blockchain and NFT technology. For this project, the METI has selected Startbahn to carry out the "Event Industry Advancement Promotion Project for Exhibitions (Distribution and Transaction Advancement Demonstration Project for Exhibitions)" in 2022.

Startbahn will hold a fashion exhibition entitled "SIZELESS TWIN" utilizing NFT as a demonstration project for the sophistication of exhibitions in the fashion industry. In addition to ① Unique Pieces provided by each fashion brand, ② Digi-Couture Sculpture: 3DCG data generated for the Metaverse space, and ③ Phygital Portrait: composite profile photographs, will be exhibited and sold at the venue.

In addition to the physical exhibition of the fashion pieces (①), we are organizing closer access to digital works (②) and (③), by providing virtual fitting, a metaverse exhibition, and the appointment of a digital twin model. Startrail NFTs (blockchain certificates) will be issued for all (①), (②), and (③) works to diversify sales content, manage works over the long term, and return profits. In addition, the exhibition will be travel from PARCEL, in Tokyo, to K11 Art Mall in Hong Kong from April 9th ​​(Sat) to May 2nd (Mon), 2022.


Table of Contents

1. Participating fashion brands / designers
2. Effects of utilizing the latest technology, including NFT technology
   a. Diversification of sales contents
   ① [Unique Fashion Piece] One-of-a-kind work + blockchain certificate
   ② [Digi-Couture Sculpture] 3DCG data for Metaverse + NFT
   ③ [Phygital Portrait] Composite photo data for profile + NFT
   b. Management of secondary distribution / use and return of monetary value
3. Comments from Taihei Shii, Startbahn’s CEO
4. Exhibition Outline of "SIZELESS TWIN"
5. Introduction of related businesses
6. Contact for inquiries regarding this press release
   
   
   1. Participating fashion brands / designers (in alphabetical order)
   
   ANREALAGE
   HIRUME
   Masaya Kushino
   TOMO KOIZUMI
   YUIMA NAKAZATO
   
   
   2. Effect of utilizing the latest technology, including NFT
   
   Currently, fashion brands are often limited to selling real, physical products. Especially in the case of works sold in haute couture format, the purchasing audience is also limited. Based on this situation, this exhibition proposes diversification of sales contents, management of secondary distribution and use, and realization of refunds by utilizing latest technology such as blockchain and NFT.
   
   
   
   a. Diversification of sales contents
   
   By developing new works such as ② Digi-Couture Sculpture and ③ Phygital Portraits, in addition to the actual physical pieces that will be handled in the exhibition, the possibilities of designers’ creative expression can be expanded. Achieving diversification of sales channels for brands and utilizing NFT (blockchain certificate) on Startrail, the work’s long-term value will be guaranteed by the fact that it is issued by a legitimate brand or designer regardless of whether it is sold or used physically or digitally.
   
   ① [Unique Piece] One-of-a-kind work + blockchain certificate
   
   We sell physical unique designer pieces (one-of-a-kind items) created by each brand and designer, as well as issue an NFT (blockchain certificate) on Startrail for each piece. They can be purchased at PARCEL, the main venue gallery.
   
   ② [Digi-Couture Sculpture] 3DCG data for Metaverse + NFT
   
   We will generate 3DCG data based on the designers’ Unique Pieces, issue an NFT (blockchain certificate) on Startrail for each, and sell it on an NFT marketplace. Purchased works can be used in the Metaverse space. The relevant NFT marketplace and metaverse space will be released on the website (https://sizelesstwin.startbahn.io) at a later date.
   
   ③ [Phygital Portrait] Composite photo data for profile + NFT
   
   "Phygital" is a compound word of "Physical" and "Digital". We will sell image data that combines the 3DCG data of the work with the exhibition visitor’s own portrait photograph, and issue a Startrail NFT (blockchain certificate) to each. Every visitor can apply for shooting portrait photography at the main venue. When the photoshoot is completed after the session, a composite photo will be sent directly to the visitor at a later date.
   
   
   b. Management of secondary distribution / use and return of monetary value
   
   By utilizing Startrail's NFT (blockchain certificate), the rules set for secondary distribution and use of works will be standardized and inherited across platforms and services, so seamless long-term management of works can be realized. When the work goes to secondary distribution, the terms of royalty fee to the original creator brand or designer will be inherited.
   
   In the future, we will update to a simpler distribution management system through API cooperation with secondary distributors. In addition, we will continue to propose ways to utilize NFTs as an incentive to provide sustainable works by utilizing the potential of blockchain technology that can comprehensively manage information related to the production process.
   
   
   3. Comments from Taihei Shii, Startbahn’s CEO
   
   Until now, Startbahn has provided blockchain and NFT technology specifically for the field of art. The value of a work of art is not simply consumed once, ending at the initial transaction, but is rather repeatedly questioned in the process of long-term distribution. For creative works, whose value will be questioned multiple times in the future, such as the works being dealt with at this exhibition, that initial primary value should be preserved from the moment it is born. We believe that blockchain technology is the best way to support such value inheritance. There are also expectations that it will be possible to continue to support creators by diversifying revenue sources through mechanisms such as distribution management and royalty fee.
   
   In addition, the word "size" present in the title of this exhibition, "SIZELESS TWIN," does not only refer to "size of clothes," but also "existence," questioning the concept of reality and truth itself. By visualizing the existence of digital twins with multiple approaches, we hope to draw a future free from "size" and to raise contemporary questions hidden in the creative world’s ephemeral nature.
   
   
   4. Exhibition Outline of "SIZELESS TWIN"
   
   [Exhibition Dates] March 4th (Friday) -March 13th (Sunday), 2022
   [Opening Hours] 2: 00-7: 00pm
   [Holidays] Monday, Tuesday
   [Venue] DDD HOTEL (2-2-1 Nihonbashibakurocho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 103-0002), Maruka Building (2-2-14 Nihonbashibakurocho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 103-0002)
   [Organizer] Startbahn, Inc.
   [Planning Supervision] Art Dynamics Inc.
   [Exhibitors] ANREALAGE, HIRUME, Masaya Kushino, TOMO KOIZUMI, YUIMA NAKAZATO
   [Cooperation] UNrealize LLC., Psychic VR Lab Co.ltd, Cyber ​​Agent, Inc., Sapeet Inc., Dentsu Lab Tokyo, Dentsu Craft Tokyo, NEORT Co., Ltd., idiomorph (Banjo Kanna), LOGS Inc.
   [Promotional Design] Semi-Transparent Design.
   [Dedicated Website] https://sizelesstwin.startbahn.io

*The exhibition dates and opening hours are subject to change due to the issuance of a state of emergency to prevent the spread of new coronavirus infections.


5. Introduction of related businesses

■ Startbahn, Inc.

Startbahn is a company that aims to realize a richer society by providing the technology needed by artists and all stakeholders involved in the art world. We are building a blockchain infrastructure "Startrail" that supports the reliability, authenticity, and inheritance value of artworks.

https://startbahn.jp/en/


What is "Startrail"?

Startrail is a sustainable blockchain infrastructure that aims to ensure the reliability and authenticity of artworks and thus support artworks’ value inheritance. We support an ecosystem unique to the art industry, in which stakeholders come from various fields such as exhibition, sale, collection, assessment, preservation, and inheritance. Startrail can permanently record various information about an artwork, such as the history of the work, as well as the history of exhibitions and auctions of that work. In addition, the artist himself can set his own work rules in advance for transactions and usage of the artwork’s secondary distribution.

https://startrail.io/


■ LOGS Inc.

Based in Nihonbashi, the boutique design hotel "DDD HOTEL" for the creative class is centered on an apparel business, a kitchen space called "nôl" which won 1 Michelin star this year, a creation-learning building called "GAKU" for teens, and much more. Logs Co., Ltd. is currently expanding businesses related to kitchen and housing studies from various angles, pursuing new forms of distribution that aim to connect the creative community.

http://logs.co.jp/


What is "DDD HOTEL"?

DDD HOTEL is a “collective hotel” located in Nihonbashibakurocho. In addition to guest rooms with a minimalist and sophisticated design, there is an art gallery called "PARCEL" for contemporary art, a cafe & bar called "abno", and a kitchen space called "nôl" that has been awarded one Michelin star. We are proposing a lifestyle that respects individuality and coexists with each other.

https://dddhotel.jp/


■ ANREALAGE

ANREALAGE is headed by designer Kunihiko Morinaga (b. Kunitachi, Tokyo, 1980). He graduated from Waseda University Faculty of Social Sciences. While in college, he attended the Vantan Design Institute and started making clothes. In 2003 he started working as "ANREALAGE". ANREALAGE stands for A REAL-everyday, UN REAL-unusual, AGE-era. He made his debut Tokyo collection at Tokyo Tower in 2005, and won the Avant-Garde Award at the New Designer contest "GEN ART 2005" in New York in the same year. He has been active in the Tokyo collection for 10 years and has been showing Paris collections since 2014. In 2015 he was selected as a finalist for the French "ANDAM FASHION AWARD". He held the "A LIGHT UN LIGHT" exhibition in Japan, which exhibited his works from Paris Fashion Week in 2017, and held a traveling exhibition at JAPAN HOUSE in Los Angeles and São Paulo. In 2019 he was selected as a finalist for the French "LVMH PRIZE". ANREALAGE received the 37th Mainichi Fashion Award in 2019. In 2020, he announced a collaboration with Italian house FENDI for their Milan Collection. ANREALAGE is in charge of the official uniform of the 2021 Dubai Expo Japan Pavilion.

https://www.anrealage.com


■ HIRUME

LABORATORY FOR ARTS AND CRAFTS

At the end of globalization, as William Morris foresaw in the latter half of the 19th century, there will once again be an era in which art and life come together. HIRUME is a laboratory where chemical reactions are created by encountering traditional craft techniques and motifs with contemporary design, art, and fashion. HIRUME is also a brand that supports the development of successors to traditional crafts. HIRUME conveys to the world the power of Japanese manufacturing that circulates ancient times, modernity, and future.

https://www.hirume.jp


■ Masaya Kushino

Masaya Kushino is a designer born in Innoshima, Onomichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture. Inspired by nature, he creates final design-themed shoes using cutting-edge and traditional techniques and presents them to the world. Currently, he is actively working on artworks that incorporate science and technology such as biotechnology. His work is permanently preserved at the National Railway Museum in the United Kingdom, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the Fashion Institute of Technology Museum in New York.

http://masayakushino.jp/


■ TOMO KOIZUMI

In 2011, Tomo Koizumi launched his own brand while attending college. Her first fashion show in 2019 was held in New York. The same year, she won the 2019 Fashion Grand Prix Selection Committee Special Award and was selected as part of Business of Fashion (BoF) 500. In 2020 she was selected as one of the LVMH Prize winners. She was in charge of costumes for the national anthem singing at the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. In 2021, she won the Mainichi Fashion Award.

http://tomo-koizumi.com/


■ YUIMA NAKAZATO

Born to a sculptor father and a goldsmith mother, Yuima Nakazato grew up surrounded by contemporary art and various creative expressions from an early age. She started making clothes on her own and entered the fashion department of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium. Her graduation collection has won numerous awards in Europe. She was selected as an invited designer by the Paris Haute Couture Association in 2016 and presented her collection in Paris. She proposes new manufacturing that combines technology and craftsmanship.

https://www.yuimanakazato.com/


■ AG Directions Inc.

A design studio producing metaverse, VR / AR, virtual human, and game content based on 3DCG video. By providing heartfelt content, being impressed, and having fun, we enrich people's hearts and contribute to the creation of a peaceful society.

http://www.agdirections.com/index.html


■ Sapeet Inc.

Sapeet is a startup company incubated in the University of Tokyo that has strengths in 3D algorithms and AI body analysis technology.

We provide our unique 3D body analysis and visualization technology as an easy-to-understand and easy-to-use system and support the sales promotion and development of service providers related to the body, including the healthcare industry.

Company name: Sapeet Co., Ltd.
Representative name: Representative Director Eiji Tsukiyama
Location: 4th floor, Hongo Segawa Building, 2-35-10 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo
Business content: Acquisition and visualization of 3D information, 3D data production and image generation, consulting & technology provision for new businesses and R & D projects related to 3D. Development and operation of AI posture analysis system "Sisei Carte".

Sapeet Corporate Website: https://about.sapeet.com/


■ Dentsu Lab Tokyo

Dentsu Lab Tokyo is a creative R&D organization that integrates research, planning, and development. With the driving philosophy of "PLAYFUL SOLUTION", we are practicing the development of expressions that move people's hearts and the solution of social issues that the world demands by using digital technology and ideas.

https://dentsulab.tokyo/


■ Dentsu Craft Tokyo

Technology, design, produce. Dentsu Craft Tokyo is a creative house where creators from various fields live together to develop "make". Based on the concept of "Human Magic", we continue to embody the ideas of clients and content holders with high crafting power, from the idea to the production and realization, and continue to disseminate it to the world.

https://dentsucraft.tokyo


■ NEORT Co., Ltd.

A startup that develops and operates the online platform "NEORT" for new art that makes full use of digital technology. In April 2022, the exhibition space "NEORT ++" specializing in digital art will open in Nihonbashi. Aiming to build a new art experience while going back and forth between online and offline.

https://neort.io


6. Contact for inquiries regarding this press release

Startbahn, Inc.
Public Relations: Risa Mizuno
pr@startbahn.jp

For this exhibition, we will individually accept media coverage during the exhibition period.
If you are interested in media coverage, please contact us using the contact information above.

*The contents of this news release are as of the date of the announcement. Please check the special website (https://sizelesstwin.startbahn.io) for the latest information.