Ladies and Gentlemen,

Japan and Sweden have had close design relations in many decades:

· Hiratsuka Raicho read and took impressions from Ellen Key.
· A group of artists cut a book of Carl Larsson to pieces and displayed his works "A HOME" in the beginning of last century.
· In the 1950:s Japanese design made a success at the well-known H 55 exhibition.
· The Swedish designer Stig Lindberg exhibited at Seibu in 1959, and designed the wrapping paper for the store.

Other more recent examples are the events Swedish Style in Tokyo and Tokyo style in Stockholm. Swedish Style in Tokyo was initiated in 1999 with the purpose to present key parts of contemporary Sweden to the Japanese audience. In 2004 Tokyo Style in Stockholm took place where Japanese fashion, design and lifestyle was presented to the Swedish audience.

I am happy to notice that despite being comparatively small actors on the global market Swedish design has come to establish itselves in Japan. With this exhibition that we pre-open today HOME SWEDish HOME I hope that we can maintain the sincere interest that has taken root in Japan for Swedish design and Swedish lifestyle. I think that the Japanese share our interest for design in everyday life design is not primarly for the museums, but for our livingrooms, our kitchen, our officies, our schools and our industries.

We also, of course, wish to support the Swedish exporters in this field, to enhance our cultural exchange, and promote the excellent relations between our countries in this field that will be of help for an enhanced exchange in many fields.

In this exhibition we can se how important design is to Swedish everyday life from the architecture of the room to the smallest cup. Contemporary Swedish design shows an extraordinary vitality with both large design companies and smaller independent designers. We can here today see several examples of this vitality and how design helps to create a good living for everybody.

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The importance of design improving everyday life and developing our industry was the reason behind why the Swedish Government in October 2002 announced that a Year of Design would be held in 2005. The purpose of the 2005 Year of Design is to carry out a wide range of activities throughout Sweden in order to increase awareness of the contribution that form and design can make across society. The goal is for as many as possible companies as well as individuals to develop their use of, interest in and knowledge of design.

There are over 1000 projects taking place during this year carried out by government agencies, local governments, organizations, businesses and other associations all over the country.

During the Year of Design the Swedish Government highlights seven prioritized areas:

1. Working life and design
2. Design as a cultural expression
3. Public procurement
4. Design for all, which for example is about using design to enable disabled people to take an active part of society.
5. Sustainabilty and design
6. Education and science
7. And finally: Design as a growth factor, which I as Minister for Industry and Trade consider especially interesting.

All countries need to strengthen their competitivness, not least when it comes to industry. We have great challenges ahead of us in our contemporary global economy. In this situation it is necessary that our companies have something unique to offer. In this perspective design can be a tool to differentiate companies from its competitors. Design is no simple solution that makes a company competitive, but used in a strategic and conscious way, design can contribute to a positive development of a product and a company. It is important that this differentiation is not just about styling exercises for products but to perceive design as something integrated in the company product development- and innovation process, the whole company organization. A well-designed product is easier to sell on the market. A well-designed industry keeps its employees healthier and more creative. In that sense, design is a matter of competitivness used in a strategic and smart way.

In this exhibition we can see how design as innovation can improve our everyday life and in at the same time contribute to a company´s opportunities to expand in old and new markets. The robotic vacuum cleaner Trilobite from Electrolux is a good example of this. It contains high level engineering and has a form that is both functional, the rounded form and low height which allows it to pass under chair legs without getting stuck, and attractive.

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The Year of Design is a long-term effort to strengthen the standing of design. The experience gained in the run up to the Year of Design and during the Year itself is intended to help to further strengthen the standing of Swedish design for many years to come.

HOME SWEDish HOME is a parallel life-style pavillion to the Nordic pavillion at the EXPO 2005 in Aichi, where Sweden participates actively. Tomorrow will be the Swedish Day at the EXPO and I am really looking forward to visit the magnificent EXPO. I hope that Sweden´s participation at the EXPO will make people want to know more about Sweden and Swedish lifestyle. This exhibition will therefore tour, starting in Okazaki our friendship town and then to more cities around Japan.

I hope you will enjoy the exhibition here at the Embassy or anywhere else in Japan the coming months.

Thank you very much for listening.

[2005-04-05]