Kazuyo Sejima and ANREALAGE collaborate on ‘CELL’ exhibition

 

Renowned Japanese architect and co-founder of SANAA, Kazuyo Sejima, has teamed up with fashion brand ANREALAGE by Kunihiko Morinaga to showcase the exhibition CELL at the Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum. Running until September 1st, 2024, the display features a unique collection of garments that blur the lines between clothing and living, striving to create ‘clothes like space, space like clothing’, and exploring what lies in between. The series highlights vibrant, bubble-like outfits, each inflated by a continuous stream of air, generating dynamic, living forms.

kazuyo sejima and ANREALAGE's kunihiko morinaga unveil inflated cell garments in tokyo
all images courtesy of ANREALAGE

 

 

A Fusion of Fashion and Space at Tokyo’s Teien Art Museum

 

Under the guidance of the Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum, iconic Japanese architect Kazuyo Sejima, and fashion designer Kunihiko Morinaga have crafted a series of clothing pieces that evoke the sensation of small, enclosed spaces. The CELL exhibition at the Tokyo-based museum features garments that are constantly inflated by fans, transforming the clothing into space. When the airflow stops, the space collapses back into clothing. This interplay embodies the concept of ‘movable space,’ with garments featuring light, flowing drapes and soft, voluminous forms.

 

Kunihiko Morinaga, the designer behind ANREALAGE, reflects on the exhibit, saying, ‘Hermit crabs, which inhabit snail shells, must find larger shells as they grow. In this case, is the shell a space or a piece of clothing? Do they live in it, or do they wear it? It seems to be both, and neither. It is somewhere between clothing and living, blurring the boundary between the everyday and the extraordinary.’

 

The exhibition is displayed in the space adjacent to the main gate of the Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum. The project was conceived to explore the unity and connection between the mansion and its surrounding garden.

kazuyo sejima and ANREALAGE's kunihiko morinaga unveil inflated cell garments in tokyo
the CELL exhibition presents a series of garments that blur the lines between clothing and living

kazuyo sejima and ANREALAGE's kunihiko morinaga unveil inflated cell garments in tokyo
the bubble-like outfits generate dynamic, living forms

kazuyo sejima and ANREALAGE's kunihiko morinaga unveil inflated cell garments in tokyo
the garments that are constantly inflated by fans

kazuyo sejima and ANREALAGE's kunihiko morinaga unveil inflated cell garments in tokyo
light, flowing drapes and soft, voluminous forms emerge within the exhibition

kazuyo sejima and ANREALAGE's kunihiko morinaga unveil inflated cell garments in tokyo
when the airflow stars, the clothing transforms into space

kazuyo sejima and ANREALAGE's kunihiko morinaga unveil inflated cell garments in tokyo
once the airflow stops, the space collapses back into clothing

kazuyo sejima and ANREALAGE's kunihiko morinaga unveil inflated cell garments in tokyo
the exhibition strives to create ‘clothes like space, space like clothing’

kazuyo sejima and ANREALAGE's kunihiko morinaga unveil inflated cell garments in tokyo
the clothing pieces evoke the sensation of small, enclosed spaces

 

 

project info: 

 

name: CELL 
designer: ANREALAGE | @anrealage_official by Kunihiko Morinaga in collaboration with Kazuyo Sejima
location: Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum
dates: July 19th – September 1st, 2024