Special Exhibition “Analogy of Couture - Constructing Garment / Knitting Architecture”

2022.11.05-2023.04.02
GREY CUBE

Garments and architecture, although two different fields, are both creations that define the act of “wearing” in human activities. Garments envelop the body, while architecture envelops people’s activities. Both can be broadly categorized as “covering environments” surrounding human activities.
Since the modern era, the efficiency and division of labor in production processes through industrialization has led to the production, distribution, and consumption of homogenized, interchangeable commodities for both. As a result, physical sensation and diversity have been largely lost from the “covering environments” that surround humans. On the other hand, in recent years, people have come to place more value on experience and empathy than on product-centered consumption, and there is a movement to return to a sense of value that focuses on the appeal of the simple experience of living and wearing, in other words, physical sensation, in the “covering environments”. In midst of these social changes, isn’t it significant to review conventional design methods and reconstruct them anew? The complex design and production process, which has become a black box, should be made transparent and opened up through primitive methods such as knitting and constructing. As a byproduct of this transparency, we believe it will be possible to ensure sustainability through a cyclical process of production, distribution, consumption, disposal, and reuse.
Today’s issues surrounding the “covering environments” are common to all, and proposals are needed that transcend the boundaries of design. The ways of “Constructing Garment / Knitting Architecture” focus on the similar structural and organizational origins of garments and architecture, and attempt to present a new design method that organically integrates the increased freedom afforded by the development of production technology, the use of natural materials with consideration for environmental impact, and the reuse of recycled fibers and materials.
This exhibition is the world premiere of the collaborative project by Yasutoshi Ezumi, fashion designer, Kengo Kuma, architect, and the Intermediatheque.

[Organizer] The University Museum, the University of Tokyo (UMUT)
[Co-Organizers] Ri Design. Ltd | Kengo Kuma & Associates
[Cooperation] STYLEM TAKISADA-OSAKA CO., LTD. |
UNICO.Co., Ltd. | Moririn Co., Ltd | WORKSTUDIO Corporation |
NANASAI Co., Ltd.