CRAFTED FOR LEXUS x Creators Workshop is a series of events pairing emerging creative talents with young designers from CRAFTED FOR LEXUS, the lifestyle collection presented by LEXUS. The fourth workshop was held in September at INTERSECT BY LEXUS – TOKYO with Shinji Iwamoto, founder of leather crafts brand Roberu, and art director Tetsuya Chihara.

The event featured a special sale of exclusively produced collaboration items as well as live painting by Chihara.

The collaboration items were a series of designer crafts by Roberu, printed with an illustration by Chihara on the white leather. Cut from four large sheets of leather, the card cases, book covers and smartphone cases, and other items all carried a unique pattern. Guests who purchased one of the items also received an extra personal touch from Iwamoto, who engraved it with their initials.

“I first drew the illustrations on a canvas,” explained Chihara. “I chose white leather so I would be able to recreate the same look. Actually, it was my first time to make a leather print with an illustration. I was surprised at how sharp the colors came out. I especially liked the leather bracelet.”

Iwamoto told us more about the materials. “White leather is tricky because it means you can’t fake the quality of the leather, but we took a chance on it because we really wanted to show off the illustration. You’ll never find a combination quite like this, pairing Chihara’s print with leather that has been tannin-tanned to achieve a really soft texture.”

The live painting part of the event saw Chihara create a spontaneous illustration on a massive white canvas. His pens glided gracefully over the surface as he drew images based on the idea of taking a trip around the world by car. “With my regular work for advertising and so on, I often spend weeks perfecting and finishing a task. Live painting, though, is all about inspiration in the moment. It means you can be influenced very immediately by the space or by something like a movie you recently saw.”

It took Chihara over three hours to complete his giant artwork. During this time, INTERSECT bustled with guests browsing the collaboration items. “The picture was ultimately completed together with the people who shared the space as I worked,” Chihara recalled. “Some made requests for me to add various flourishes. I just took my time and enjoyed the company as I worked away at my picture. This interactive element is one of the great things about live painting.”

To mark his achievement and bring the event to a close, a group photo was taken in front of the finished artwork.

The day of the event also coincided with Vogue Fashion’s Night Out 2016, the world’s largest shopping event that takes place around the Omotesando, Aoyama and Harajuku areas of central Tokyo. Located in the heart of Minami-Aoyama, INTERSECT BY LEXUS also had sparkling wine on hand for the many visitors who dropped by as the night came alive with revelers enjoying the event.