MAKING NUNO at Japan House London: Online Panel Discussion

Image: CHAT (Centre for Heritage, Arts and Textile), Hong Kong

Get a sneak peek of Japan House London’s next exhibition MAKING NUNO: Japanese Textile Innovation from Sudō Reiko with this online panel discussion bringing together the main protagonists behind its creation: Sudō Reiko, textile designer and member of the Japan Design Committee, Takahashi Mizuki, Executive Director and Chief Curator of CHAT (Hong Kong), and Saitō Seiichi, artistic director of the exhibition and Director of Panoramatiks.

Chaired by Simon Wright, Japan House London’s Programming Director, the discussion introduces the making of the exhibition and the themes it explores, such as sustainability of materials, regional manufacturing and the combination of Japanese craft traditions with new engineering techniques in the context of the wide variety of Sudō Reiko’s work.

There is an opportunity for registered guests to ask questions to the speakers during this live online event, which is conducted entirely in English.

The exhibition MAKING NUNO Japanese Textile Innovation from Sudō Reiko is due to open in the Japan House London Gallery on 17 May, UK government guidelines permitting.

About the Speakers

Sudō Reiko

Sudō Reiko was born in Ishioka City, Ibaraki Prefecture. After serving as a textile laboratory assistant in the Department of Industrial, Interior, and Craft Design at Musashino Art University, she helped found Nuno Corporation. As Nuno's Design Director, she combines Japanese traditions of dyeing and weaving with cutting-edge technology to create a wide range of innovative textiles. Sudō received an honorary MA degree from the University for the Creative Arts (UK), and has been an Emeritus Professor at Tokyo Zōkei University since 2019. Since 2008, she has worked in fabric planning and development for Mujirushi Ryōhin (MUJI) and the Tsuruoka Textile Industry Cooperative, and in design advising for AZU. She joined MUJI's Advisory Board in 2016. Recipient of the Mainichi Design Award, the Rosco Design Prize, the JID Award, and many other honours, Sudō has received high acclaim within Museum of Modern Art (USA), The Metropolitan Museum of Art (USA), Boston Museum of Art (USA), the Victoria & Albert Museum (UK) and The National Museum of Modern Art Tokyo (Japan) among many others. Representative projects include textile designs for Mandarin Oriental Tokyo, the Tokyo American Club and Oita Prefectural Art Museum. Sudō is frequently invited to give lectures and hold exhibitions around the world, including the major Koi nobori Now! textile installation at the National Art Center Tokyo in 2018 and Sudō Reiko: Making NUNO Textiles at the Centre for Heritage Arts & Textile Hong Kong in 2019. 

Takahashi Mizuki

Takahashi Mizuki is the Executive Director and Chief Curator of Centre for Heritage, Arts and Textile (CHAT) in Hong Kong. She completed her MA in History of Art from both Waseda University, Tokyo and The School of Oriental and African Studies, London. After serving as a founding curatorial member at Mori Art Museum in Tokyo from 1999-2003, Takahashi worked as senior curator at Contemporary Art Center, Art Tower Mito and realised numerous trans-disciplinary exhibitions addressing various artistic forms including manga, film, fashion, architecture, performance and contemporary art.

Saitō Seiichi

Panoramatiks Director (ex-Rhizomatiks Architecture). Born in Kanagawa in 1975, Saitō Seiichi began his career in New York in 2000 after graduating from Columbia University with a Master of Science degree in Advanced Architectural Design (MSAAD). Since then, he has been active in creative work at the ArnellGroup, and returned to Japan upon being selected for the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial 2003. He produces works in the commercial art field which are three-dimensional and interactive while also being based on the firm grounding in logical thought that he cultivated through architecture. He has won numerous international awards since 2009. Launched Rhizomatiks Co.,Ltd. in 2006. Since 2016, he serves as director of Rhizomatiks Architecture. Vice Chairman of Good Design Award 2018-20. Creative Adviser of 2020 Dubai Expo Japan pavilion. An expert for the Peoples's Living Lab Promotion Council for Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan.