MoMA added to its collection NTT DoCoMo’s original set of 176 emoji, 12x12 pixel humble masterpieces of design that planted the seeds for the explosive growth of a new visual language.
MoMA announced the addition of NTT DoCoMo’s original set of 176 emoji to its collection. Developed under the supervision of Shigetaka Kurita and released for cell phones in 1999, these 12 x 12 pixel humble masterpieces of design planted the seeds for the explosive growth of a new visual language.
Working within the software and hardware limitations of the late 1990s, Kurita created his emoji on a small grid of 12 x 12 pixels. Drawing on sources as varied as manga, Zapf dingbats, and commonly used emoticons, Kurita designed a set of 176 emoji that included illustrations of weather phenomena, pictograms like the ♥, and a range of expressive faces.
Released in 1999, Kurita’s 176 emoji (picture characters) were instantly successful. Twelve years later, when a far larger set was released for Apple’s iPhone, emoji burst into a new form of global digital communication.
