Carps Swim Around The World – Reiko Sudo | Interviews

Reiko Sudo, a renowned Japanese textile designer, has exhibited her creations at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, Guimet Museum, and John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, among many other prestigious museums around the world. In addition, her works are in the permanent collections of many museums worldwide. She is the Executive Design Director of Nuno Corporation. and is on the Design Advisory Board of MUJI, an Honorary Master of Arts at the University for the Creative Arts, and Professor Emeritus of Tokyo Zokei University, Department of Textile Design. She creates her pieces in traditional Japanese scenes, some at the Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo, and the Oita Prefectural Art Museum. For Sudo’s bold and innovative installations, ARAKAWA GRIP play a significant role.
Sudo's exhibition "Cloth, Technique and Art," in 2001 generated worldwide recognition. It was held at the Kyoto Art Center, a reused abandoned school building in Muromachi, Kyoto. Moreover, Kentaro Takeguchi and Asako Yamamoto of the up-and-coming architectural firm ALPHAVILLE based in Kyoto were commissioned to design the exhibition space. Since the surrounding area of this venue is known for kimono, Sudo was asked to " showcase the theme future through textiles. Accordingly, one of the exhibits included a biodegradable resin fiber made from corn-derived polylactic acid, which was being developed by RIKEN at the time, woven together with Kyoto artisans. Then it was rust-dyed and made into red fabric for a tea ceremony exhibit. Furthermore, architect Shohei Matsukawa and his colleagues created a video of the textile production process, which was projected onto the fabric as what is now known as projection mapping. Each of these exhibits introduced new perspectives to the world of textiles.

Sudo's collaboration with architects dates back to 1984. It was the year NUNO was founded, and the work was for architect Toyo Ito's private residence, "Silver Hat," which he had designed at the time. Mr. Ito asked NUNO to present a proposal as professional textile designers to install curtains. It turned out to be a challenging project because there were no vertical windows on the layout plans," and as a result, they ended up installing an interior fabric structure in the form of a tent. Mr. Ito's daughter, who was in elementary school then, was delighted to find something she thought looked like a mosquito net. Mr. Ito has been designing architectural spaces that blend the boundaries between the outside and the inside, creating a membranous architecture. Sudo considers him to be a pioneer in the usage of textiles in architecture. Mr. Ito has taught her the relationship between space, objects, and light, as well as the role of textiles in the composition of space.
Sudo is particularly known for her installation of Japanese koinobori (carp streamers). These carp streamers are approximately a meter long and come in assorted designs. According to Sudo, it all started when her younger brother had his first son, and she wanted to give him a special present, so she made a koinobori of a textile she had designed. She began producing them professionally around the year 2000 and eventually became a customary seasonal product featured at the NUNO store and gallery in Roppongi AXIS. These koinobori streamers and their installation were favorably received by the chief director of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., and slightly transformed koinobori installation traveled across the ocean to be exhibited at the "Japan! Culture+Hyperculturenuno's " in 2008. In this event, 69 koinobori were hung using polyester strings. And a decade later, in 2018, the Koinobori exhibition were to return to the National Art Center, Tokyo. On that occasion, Sudo could not imagine hanging 300 carp with strings, so she consulted with an architect friend and he introduce n this event, 69 koinobori were hung using polyester strings. And a decade later, in 2018, the Koinobori exhibition was to return to the National Art Center, Tokyo. On that occasion, Sudo could not imagine hanging 300 carp with strings, so she consulted with an architect friend, and he introduced her to ARAKAWA GRIP.

As it turns out, they were used to hang textiles in her store, which had a striking effect, and she had many of them installed on the ceiling. Utilizing delicate and authentic hardware, ARAKAWA GRIP, a large koinobori were hung using only two wires with a precise articulation of angles. She later learned that ARAKAWA has a variety of other fixtures that can be used for large-scale and complex installations. Following this event, one hundred koinobori were set to fly into Hong Kong at the end of 2019. She was able to showcase them in a space with a ceiling higher than ten-meter thanks to the ARAKAWA GRIP used at the National Art Center, Tokyo. Later, koinobori also flew at the opening of MUJI's flagship store in Stockholm, Sweden, and a grand MUJI store in Switzerland. According to Sudo, textiles are materials like stones, wood, and metal; their expression changes depending on how they are used and presented. In this sense, new expressions can be explored by working with creators of various genres. When we work on textiles, we collaborate with many artisans, including those who spin, dye, weave, and fabricate the textiles. When we work on a new project, we collaborate with various artisans, including those who spin, dye, weave, and finish the textile. Even for the exhibition, each piece of wire and hardware is an essential element of the presentation for Sudo.

A major exhibition titled "Contemporary Japanese Textiles" was held at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in 1998, featuring many of NUNO's textiles. Then Dean of the Architecture Department at Harvard University, Toshiko Mori, led the exhibition design. And Sudo recalls ARAKAWA GRIP were equipped in its planning. At the end of 2021, the "Nuno Nuno" exhibition was held at the Roppongi Axis Building in collaboration with young designer we+. The display was a spinning textile cube that rotated at the speed of the second hand of a clock, so the visitors stood still, unlike a typical exhibition hall where they moved around. There were some initial concerns; however, the grips rotated effortlessly, so there were no problems. The flexibility of ARAKAWA GRIP was beyond our imagination, and the designers were impressed.
With its simplicity and limitless possibilities, ARAKAWA GRIP will continue to fascinate and inspire creators with its versatile functionality. text by Masaaki Takahashi