A Magic Carpet in Milan

At Issey Miyake’s Milan flagship, a blanket of red, yellow, purple, and pink porcupine-like skewers resembling carpet fibers stands at attention, draped over the barebones of a sofa. Another carpet composed of gold and silver pins atop a contorted, dark gray foam sheet—aptly titled Pin Carpet, 2024—snakes between a series of wooden frames.

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‍Today We Make Carpets debuts a new project inspired by the creations of Issey Miyake at the brand’s Italian store during the city’s renowned design week. The project, titled “Fold and Crease,” features a series of installations that pay homage to the late designer’s avant-garde designs.

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‍Over the last 15 years, the Dutch art collective—which was established in 2009 by design trio Marcia Nolte, Stijn van der Vleuten, and Bob Waardenburg—has challenged mass production by breathing new life into ordinary objects and materials in a carpet-making process it calls “re-appreciation.” Under We Make Carpets’ hands, neglected items such as an unremarkable kitchen sponge or a clothes peg are woven into delicate works of art. 

‍This exhibition marks an ongoing, art-centric approach to honoring Miyake’s legacy and underscoring his designs themselves as works of art. Since the Milan outpost opened in 2017, it has annually showcased projects by contemporary designers and artists who share the legendary designer’s sensibilities, including Japanese studio Nature Architects and sculptor Tatsuo Miyajima. From producing the signature black turtlenecks of Apple’s Steve Jobs to designing the 1992 Summer Olympics uniform for Lithuania, Miyake was known for his innovative design techniques and reverence for unconventional materials, as seen in his use of archival ceramic buttons by Austrian pottery artist Dame Lucie Rie.

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The one-of-a-kind carpets created by We Make Carpets are not only a synthesis of Miyake’s designs but also a harmonization of the fashion brand’s philosophy, which requires an intensive research and development process not unlike the meticulous procedures seen in the creation of haute couture. The art collective’s site-specific installations incorporate references to the physical location and the materials utilized in its construction. The three designers work quietly beside each other to carefully place each object in its rightful place, forsaking the use of high-tech gadgets in favor of their own hands. It is within this painstaking process that the works of We Make Carpets beg to be seen. And seen again. “Fold and Crease” is a testament to the power of artistry, and its ability to transform the simplest of objects into highly intricate works of art.

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‍“Fold and Crease” is on view until April 29, 2024 at Issey Miyake at Via Bagutta, 12, 20121 Milano MI, Italy.