The Fold and Crease Exhibition Flows Freely With Undulating Skewers

At the ISSEY MIYAKE CUBE in Ginza, Tokyo, a stark white facade greets the viewer with pops of textured color peeking out from the interior as they face the Fold and Crease (Extended) exhibition by We Make Carpets. Rippling surfaces of slender wooden forms protrude in their tens of thousands, extending from soft planes in a miasma of color. ISSEY MIYAKE’s visionary influence continues to be felt on design globally, ranging from fashion to collaborations in architecture, product design, and interiors. Fold and Crease (Extended) adds to these historic projects, focused on the “playability” and “touchability” of the represented textures – much like the pleating synonymous with MIYAKE’s work.

Appearing soft, the pliable membrane holds a bevy of undulating skewers in quick succession. The tops of the skewers are painted different colors, adding to the dappled quality of the exhibit. All receiving similar amounts of light, the forms contort around wooden frames, gravity and forethought defining where the pieces ultimately rest. Where the membrane ripples, a certain density is lost within the skewers, like fur off a startled cat’s back. The convex curves add more visual interest, colors from the tips of the skewers converging in a brilliant confluence of texture.

The original Fold and Crease exhibition debuted in 2024 at the Milan ISSEY MIYAKE store during Milan Design Week. Since then, We Make Carpets has expanded on the existing pieces, including the Skewer Carpet 2, which is made from 60,000 skewers painted in four colors. Adding to the previous concept, the Skewer Carpet 2 (extended) spans just over 13 feet long by  3.25 feet wide, and is built with a new form and color palette out of 40,000 bamboo skewers.

For Skewer Carpet 3, We Make Carpets went vertical, a feat they’ve wanted to accomplish for quite some time. The standing, spiral-like column is almost three feet in diameter by just under seven feet tall, containing 40,000 skewers hand-painted in four hues.

Rounding out the Fold and Crease (Extended) exhibition, Pin Carpets 7-10, which reside on custom-made stainless steel stands, comprises thousands of brass and steel pins in foam that’s been shaped and held in its wavy form by screws.

We Make Carpets has been toeing the line between design and art since 2009, born out of a collaboration between founders and artists that share an appreciation for the provenance of materials. No exhibit is without context, the scale of the work being determined by the space it inhabits. The meticulous placement of everyday materials and the inherent labor that goes into creating projects such as theirs speak to how art is viewed in society, and whose hands created these rugs, ultimately made never to be used. We Make Carpets cheerfully incorporates this subversion into each sculpture, more about the meditative qualities of the work and the meaning within than the product itself.

Issey Miyake was a prolific designer, redefining multiple industries in his over 50-year career. Architectural and definitive, his style of sculptural design renders the body as a disparate collection of objects, coated with a signature twist on fashion that has garnered critical acclaim across the globe. He is quoted as saying, “Design is not for philosophy – it’s for life.”

To learn more about the We Make Carpets Fold and Crease (Extended) exhibition on view until April 27, 2025, visit isseymiyake.com.

Woodwork by Tsugi.
Photography courtesy of © ISSEY MIYAKE INC.