Shiseido – My Crayon Project

Japan is one of the most homogenous nations on the planet, with only 3.4% of the population born overseas. As such, notions of diversity are far more nuanced than in other countries, especially those in the West.

In schools across the country – where homogeneity and uniformity is valued – subtle differences in skin tone are noticed. ‘Hafus’ – kids of mixed race – are often seen as outsiders, and bullied, despite being Japanese.

It’s a problem exacerbated by the fact that there’s even a word for skin color – ‘Hada-iro’ – which 79% of the population associate with just one color: pale peach.

An expert in skin color, with 140 years of skin research, Shiseido set out to educate the next generation with a program celebrating differences, no matter how small.

To teach kids to respect their differences in schools across Japan, Shiseido enlisted the help of an unlikely champion: a crayon.

Until recently, the basic crayon set in all Japanese elementary schools included a “skin color” crayon. This meant that every child grew up drawing pictures with the one and same, peach colored “hada-iro”.

Partnering with schools, we offered a fun, eye-opening class about diversity. In the sessions, Shiseido scientists scanned each child’s skin to create a unique color profile, drawing on Shiseido’s 140 years of expertise in the subtle nuances of Japanese skin.

The result was matched with a crayon of the exact same color–so that each child got their own, unique ‘hada-iro’ crayon. Kids drew themselves, then swapped crayons to draw each other, turning a humble crayon into a catalyst for discovery and re-evaluation of diversity.

Partnering with Yokohama Shirahata primary school, we created and piloted a unique class combining art and civics. In the session, Shiseido scientists scanned each child’s skin to create a unique color profile. This was then matched with a crayon of the exact same color – so that each child got their own unique ‘hada-iro’. Kids drew themselves, then to better understand others, they swap crayons with another child before drawing each other.

After the successful pilot, Shiseido has started rolling out the event to schools across Japan–six to date. The classes have provided a highly social, interactive, and fun way to learn about and appreciate others’ differences, creating an experience applauded by kids and teachers alike.