A Japanese designer (1934 - 1991), he studied architecture in Tokyo and then design in Kuwasawa. 
In 1965, he founded the Kuramata Design Office, his design studio. 
In the 1970s and 1980s, he worked both as an interior architect and designer.
Close to Ettore Sottsass, he made furniture for the Memphis group and the boutiques of the fashion designer Issey Miyake. 
In 1988, he moved to Paris where he was awarded the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres in 1990, recognising him as one of the greatest designers of the 20th century. 
Shiro Kuramata's design is poetic, minimal, constantly seeking lightness, transparency and light.