Gallery 1:
As you enter the venue, fabrics are laid out in a dimly-lit space. Soft light bathes individual fabrics, illuminating them before fading away as if it had been absorbed into the cloth. Also presented are a number of videos, including collaborations between Arai and ISSEY MIYAKE for the 1983-85 Paris collections, and explanations of Arai’s creative processes. Fresh perspectives are provided by means such as instruments that give visitors a microscopic view of the structure of materials used to make fabrics—minerals, yarn, and textiles. This gallery provides an overall introduction to the leading-edge ideas and innovation that Arai invests in creating new fabrics.
Fabrics demonstrating the variety of Arai’s techniques, together with objects involved in his manufacturing processesGallery 2:
Viewers are first drawn into a whirling maze of Arai’s textiles. After exiting this gigantic whirlpool, there is a forest of fabric in bewitching colors and fabric made using metallic yarn. This is an opportunity to discover the variety of Arai’s work using traditional tie-dye techniques. The fabrics are so pliable that they ripple under only the slightest breeze on either side. Together with the unique creativity that Arai brings to the manufacture of fabrics, viewers can also learn about fascinating qualities of textiles that normally go unnoticed.
Dynamic installation and forest of fabric - A space for directly experiencing Arai’s textiles
Kaleidoscope IV
polyester, aluminium (slit yarn), tie, melt off, heat transfer print 1992
White Bow
nylon, aluminium (slit yarn), holography coating, tie, melt off 1993
Blue
wool, nylon, aluminium (slit yarn), tie, shurunk, tie-dye 1995
Pleats I
polyphenylen sulfide, aluminium (slit yarn) 2007
Ojo de Dios(Eye of the God)
polyester, aluminium (slit yarn) 1984
Lattice
polyester, aluminium (slit yarn), silofil wool 1991
Korean Carrot I
wool, jacquard, shurunk 1981
Fabric by Fabrics
wool, acrylic, jacquard, double weave 1981-84
