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“Isn’t the slightly downward tilt of its head adorable?” He says he displays it on a bookshelf in his bedroom together with birds and glass bottles by Tapio Wirkkala. (Photo: Noritsugu Oda)
This is Woodcock by Kai Frank, a nationally beloved designer often affectionately called “the conscience of Finnish design.” A small bird art piece measuring 112 mm in length, it was designed in 1954 and manufactured by Iittala until 1968. Since it has never been exhibited before at exhibitions or elsewhere, this is its first public appearance. Though somewhat abstract and not clearly identifiable as a particular species of bird, it conveys a warm and affectionate gaze toward living creatures. When it comes to glass birds, Oiva Toikka’s Iittala Birds are famous, but in fact, it was Kai Frank who first designed birds in glass. Both worked as designers at the Nuutajärvi glassworks, essentially in a master-and-apprentice relationship. It was Oiva Toikka who inherited his mentor’s ideas and brought them to the world on a broader scale.
Kai Frank is also a familiar designer beloved by many in Japan, known for Kartio glasses and Teema tableware by Iittala, which became so widely used that they reached nearly every household in Finland. He was both an artist and someone deeply loved by the general public. This dual nature — artistic quality combined with industrial practicality — is one of the characteristics shared across Finnish design.
It must have been four or five years ago. While on a business trip to Tokyo with officials from Higashikawa Town, I stopped by a vintage shop called Elephant, where I came across this bird. Although I had known of its existence, I had never encountered one before, perhaps because so few remain. When I offered to buy it “in installments” because it was expensive, the owner — someone I had known for many years and who understood my work well — said, “I’d like to give it to you as a gift.” When you continue devoting yourself to one thing for a long time, someone, somewhere, is always watching. That trust builds over time, and more and more people come to support you like this. In that way, the Oda Collection continues to grow.
2026/04/28, interview
【After the Interview】
During the interview, we began talking about how “people with a minimalist mindset own only a few good things and use them carefully.” The conversation went like this: “I could never live that kind of life.” “Yes, I know,” I replied. “I want to surround myself with things I love, use them with affection, and end my life feeling enriched. After that, everything will be donated to Higashikawa Town.” I believe that what is truly remarkable is not only the Oda Collection itself, but also the fact that he created a system to preserve the entire collection without dispersing it, and to make it accessible to society in various forms. Not every municipality could accomplish something like this. It seems to me that, at every important turning point, some higher power entrusted Mr. Oda with an important mission and guided him along the way. Watching the many town employees at the Oda residence sorting furniture, carrying it out, disposing of large quantities of unnecessary belongings, and sweeping the floors, I became convinced that Higashikawa — the community that became the steward of this extraordinary legacy — will continue to flourish and grow ever richer in the years ahead.
— Interviewer / Copywriter: Kano Nishikawa
Number tags used to classify items for transport and those to remain behind. Both will be carefully managed by Higashikawa Town.
Under the blue sky, a white magnolia in full bloom seemed to watch over the work.
Read
The Oda Collection: 12 Charming Masterpieces
Read
A collection of memories by Mr. Noritsugu Oda 12
Video
Life at Oda’s Residence
Read
The Oda Collection: 12 Charming Masterpieces
Read
A collection of memories by Mr. Noritsugu Oda 12
Video
Life at Oda’s Residence
