The government of Higashi Yoshino, a village in Japan’s Nara Prefecture, approached Studio 1212 to help promote Yoshino wood, a material prized for centuries in temple building but facing declining demand as Japan shifted toward modern materials like concrete and plastic. The challenge was not just to present the wood itself, but to make it meaningful for new audiences in Southeast Asia. Rather than focus on raw timber, Studio 1212 was tasked with reframing Yoshino wood in a way that architects, furniture designers, and creative communities in Indonesia could connect with, positioning it as both cultural heritage and a material with contemporary relevance.

The result was Into the Woods, a three-day exhibition hosted at Dia.Lo.Gue Artspace in Jakarta. Studio 1212 managed the exhibition design, layout, collateral, and promotional materials, shaping the event  as both a showcase and a story. Rather than present Yoshino wood as raw material, the exhibition emphasized furniture crafted in Nara, accompanied by displays of traditional tools and process documentation that revealed the care behind each piece. To deepen the experience, a talk session was held on the opening day with government representatives and craftsmen, allowing audiences to hear directly about the heritage and practices of Higashi Yoshino. This combination of objects, process, and dialogue gave visitors a fuller sense of the wood’s value, bridging tradition with new contexts and positioning Yoshino wood within Southeast Asia’s creative landscape.