Lexus is to be the exclusive channel sponsor of Sky Arts, the UK’s only dedicated Arts channel. The partnership will support a creative community that has experienced a challenging time throughout the pandemic and will reinforce Lexus’s connection to craft while celebrating the brand’s Japanese heritage and raising awareness of its design-led ethos.
The partnership with Sky Media features 15 five-second edited versions of a Lexus documentary on the Japanese concept of takumi, which will run as the sponsorship ident for Sky Arts across both the TV and on-demand channels. The partnership launches on 1 April 2021 and will run until 30 September 2022.
In Japan, a person is not considered a takumi master craftsperson until they have spent at least 60,000 hours refining their skills. Lexus takumi oversee the making of every car and dedicate years to mastering their skills and refining their work to achieve perfection. The Lexus brand’s association with design and craftsmanship extends beyond its luxury cars and includes initiatives such as the Lexus Design Awards, which supports up-and-coming design talent who create products designed for a better tomorrow.
In addition to the takumi idents, the partnership will include further experiential activity from Lexus throughout 2021 and 2022, which will be dedicated to the arts community and promoted across the Lexus and Sky Arts social channels. Lexus has also committed to working with Sky Arts on ad-funded programming to be broadcast during the eighteen-month partnership.
Phil Edgar-Jones, Director of Sky Arts and Ents said: “In 2020, as the arts community struggled, Sky Arts opened our doors to become free to everyone. Since then, we’ve continued to further our support of the cultural sector, showcasing the very best of theatre, music and the visual arts along with supporting emerging artists through our Ambassador scheme. We are thrilled to have Lexus as the channel sponsor, with its design and craftsmanship heritage, to amplify the Sky Arts mission to connect with creative minds and nurture the next generation of artists.”
