Event Outline

theme

"String art using thread and nails"

• Unique and original work
• Works that you'll want to tell someone about (share)
• A work that shows the concept and passion behind the work

Application Deadline

Until 23:59 on Friday, January 31, 2025

prize

<Adults section>

• Grand Prize (1 person): Eraberu Pay 100,000 yen
• Runner-up (2 people): Eraberu Pay 30,000 yen
• Special Jury Prize (5 winners): Eraberu Pay 10,000 yen
• Nail it!! Prize (5 winners): Nail it!! Nail bag (5 colors), Nail it!! Thread (5 colors)

<Children's Section>

• Grand Prize (1 person): Nail it!! Rubber holder main unit set, Nail it!! Lightweight plastic hammer, Nail it!! Nail bag (4 colors), Trophy
• Runners-up (2 winners): Nail it!! Rubber holder set, Nail it!! nail bag (4 colors), trophy
• Special Jury Award (5 winners): Nail it!! nail bag (4 colors), Nail it!! thread (4 colors), certificate
• Nail it!! Award (5 winners): Nail it!! Nail bag (3 colors), Nail it!! Thread (2 colors), Certificate
• Fujix Award (5 winners): Nail it!! Thread (4 colors), Certificate
• Wakai Sangyo Award (1 person): Nail it!! nail bag (4 colors), Nail it!! thread (4 colors), 10x10 wood (4 pieces), Nail it!! kit product, certificate

* Prize-winning works that are commercialized may be modified in part as appropriate.

<Participation Prize>

555 yen coupon for use at WAKAI Online Store DIY & LIFE GOODS (available for purchases of 3,000 yen or more including tax)

<Gifts for the first 5 people>

Nail it!! Nail bag included (assorted 3 colors)

Eligibility

<Adults section>

This offer is available to those who purchase "Nail it!!" products from Wakai Sangyo Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "our company") for 5,000 yen or more (tax included).
Please prepare an image of the purchase receipt or a receipt/delivery note showing the purchase details (multiple copies are acceptable).
If you apply via Instagram, we will confirm your application via direct message (DM). If you apply via Google Form, please paste an image of a receipt or other document in the designated area.

<Children's Section>

The contest is open to anyone aged 15 or under. There is no charge for entry.
*This offer is available to those born on or after April 2, 2009.

How to Apply

Please take a photo of your work and submit it. There are two ways to apply:
If you take photos with a smartphone, please take them at as large a size (high quality) as possible.

■ Instagram

★You can apply even if you don't follow us.

Please fill out the required information below and submit it along with a photo of your work.

• Title
• Comments on the work
• Application category (adult or children's)
• Hashtag "#StringArtContest2024"

■ Google Forms

Fill out the necessary information, attach a photo of your work, and submit the form during the application period.

Work regulations

• There is no size restriction.
  (Since the second round of judging is a physical examination, applicants will be responsible for packaging materials and shipping costs.)
• The nails, thread, and other materials used in your creations are not limited to our products.
• You can also submit works using Nail it!! kit products or pattern sheets (designs) provided by our company.

Screening Method

<First round of judging> Judging based on photos of works

The photos of your submissions will be reviewed and judged. We plan to contact those who pass the first round of screening around mid-February 2025. Applicants who applied via Instagram will be contacted via DM from the Nail It official Instagram account, and those who applied via Google Form will be contacted by email. When we contact you, we will send you a special form, so please fill in the necessary information.

<Second round of screening> Actual screening *Works must be sent

The judges will review the works that pass the first round of judging to select the outstanding works. The judging and exhibition of the works is scheduled for mid- to late March 2025.

• Please send your work to a designated location for screening and exhibition. Entrants are responsible for packaging materials and shipping costs.
• You can participate in the exhibition.
• Works will be returned regardless of whether they have won an award or not. After the judging or exhibition, they are scheduled to be returned in late April 2025.
• The return of the works that won the Wakai Industry Prize in the Children's Category will be delayed due to commercialization. The works are scheduled to be returned around July 2025. It will take longer than other award-winning works, and we ask for your understanding.
• The winning entries will be announced on our website and social media.

Judging Criteria

1. Creativity and originality : We evaluate how well your ideas and perspectives are expressed, the combination of different materials, originality, and novelty.
2. Expression and technique : We evaluate the level of expression and technique. What is the technical element of string art?
3. Storytelling : We evaluate your storytelling ability, including the development of the story and theme, character portrayal, etc. Whether the emotion and message are conveyed easily.
4. Imagination and creativity : We evaluate your imagination and creativity. Were you able to think from a variety of ideas and perspectives?

Special Judges

Koji Okada, Director of the Thread Design Institute

In January 2018, with the aim of "eliminating the misconception that 'prime number thread mandalas' are all over the internet," she started disseminating accurate information on threading and new design techniques based on arithmetic and mathematics. As of July 2023, she is spreading the joy and infinite possibilities of threading with 480 friends around the world, with the goal of "one day making threading a culture."

Director of the Central Library, Kindai University
Professor, Faculty of Literature, Kinki University

He works as a critic, working across the fields of literature, theater, film, dance, photography, and art.
At Kinki University, he served as head of the Japanese Literature Department of the Faculty of Literature and Dean of the Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Studies. Since 2005, he has been director of the Central Library, where he has been involved in the establishment of the Academic Theater, focusing on liberal arts education that combines the humanities and sciences and crosses disciplines, as well as the creation of new "practical learning" in collaboration with local companies and local governments.

Aiko Yoshikawa, Representative Director of the Thread Mandala Association

In 2014, while living in the mountains of Nepal, she started creating thread mandalas to express a colorful world. After returning to Japan in July 2017, she established the Thread Mandala Association, a general incorporated association, and has been holding various workshops for adults and children around the country, training thread mandala instructors, and holding exhibitions.
He currently splits his time between the Mandala Dome House in Azumino and Yokohama.

Books: "Enjoy Colors: Thread Mandalas"

Artist: Arisa Chinen

Born in Kanagawa Prefecture.
Graduated from the Department of Fine Art at the University of the Arts London, and completed the Master's and Doctoral programs at the Department of Inter-Media Art at Tokyo University of the Arts.
Chinen's work, an accumulation of "drawings" that have a certain delicacy and fragility, focuses on the beauty that is overlooked as time passes by quickly and the injustice of society. Through repetitive manual tasks such as pointillism and string art, he constantly attempts to capture the moment of "now."

Masayuki Inoue, General Manager of Development Division, Wakai Holdings Co., Ltd.

Wakai Holdings Co., Ltd. started out as a nail wholesaler, then focused on developing its own products, and now manufactures and sells a wide variety of construction fasteners, such as screws, nails, and metal fittings, under the "WAKAI" brand, mainly at its own group factories. In addition, the company is also focusing on developing DIY products using the know-how it has gained from many years of manufacturing.

(Titles omitted, in no particular order)

Result Announcement Date

Scheduled to be announced in late March 2025

【cooperation】

Kinki University/Higashiosaka Brand Promotion Organization

Application Terms

If you are applying for the contest, please be sure to read the application terms and conditions.

If you have any questions, please contact us using the inquiry form .

See last year's results