Maison Margiela will be hosting a hacking project for its signature handbag, the 5AC, at Maison Margiela Omotesando from October 3rd to 17th.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
Since its launch in 2016, the 5AC collection has been reinterpreted in various styles across seasons. Participants include artist duo Nerhol, consisting of graphic designer Yoshihisa Tanaka and sculptor Ryuta Iida; Shoko Otake, who specializes in woodblock prints; BIEN, whose work focuses on various mediums, primarily drawings; and NUNO | we+, a textile designer and design studio. This project reinterprets "5AC" through the lens of four Japanese artists.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
Nerhol
Nerhol, an artist duo known for their paper sculptures made from layered sequential photographs, created "Canvas (Nusa)," a hacked canvas work. While reexamining Japanese culture through canvas, the duo felt compelled to return to hemp paper. Working with artisans, they crafted paper from the precious hemp fiber known as ooasa (hemp), shredded it, twisted it into thread, and wove the threads on a loom to create 100% hemp paper canvases. For Maison Margiela, this mind-bogglingly labor-intensive process is the very essence of layering.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
The surface of the canvas, which varies in appearance depending on whether it is woven in a plain or jacquard weave, is rubbed and scraped until holes are created, and then layers of cowhide glue are applied. The outline and materials of the "5AC" bag emerge through the glittering glue on the surface and the roughly woven canvas. By placing the "5AC" within the space behind it, reflected in the mesh of the canvas, the concepts of the bag and the artwork are overlapped.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
Otake Shoko
Otake Shoko mainly works in woodblock prints, embodying scenes she sees in her daily life. In addition to creating her own artwork, she also provides her work for book illustrations and fashion textiles. In her work "HACKED PATCHED," she expresses the process of hacking into one's mind and the images that emerge are patched together and multiplied.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
This mental patchwork, which is in line with the Maison's code "Memory of," combines different pieces into a single item, evoking memories of its function and story and discovering new value, is a work that also evokes memories in the viewer.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
BIEN
BIEN creates works in multiple media, including video, sculpture, instructional and installation, with a focus on unique drawing expressions influenced by animation and street culture. His works attempt to unravel the world woven together by the illusions of images and fiction created by humankind, and immutable material objects. "Visible observation for 5AC" features multiple MDF sculptures and the "5AC" Micro. Paintings and videos are intended to be viewed from a single vantage point, but by viewing them from different angles, we can escape the imaginary perception inherent in the object and see its real-world aspects, such as the paint or canvas lining. In other words, we can see the boundary between the material, imbued with an image, and the object as simply a material object. This also demonstrates that we cannot uniformly grasp the various facets of things.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
With the "5AC" bag now available in a variety of sizes, the smaller bag's role as an accessory is emphasized. While retaining the shape of a bag, its movement, subverting existing concepts, overlaps with his sculpture series. Although we normally recognize the "5AC" as a "bag," if we remove that label, it becomes something enigmatic and elusive, something that cannot be categorized into a single genre, just like a sculpture; the purpose is for it to reappear as a foreign body.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
NUNO | we+
NUNO | we+ is a collaborative project launched in December 2022 by NUNO, a textile design studio led by Reiko Sudo that produces fabrics in Japan, and we+, a contemporary design studio founded by Toshiya Hayashi and Hokuto Ando. Their work, "Rotating Cube - Inverse Equation," uses three cubes to represent the production process of NUNO's "Swing Square" embroidered fabric, in which square embroidery pieces become part of the textile and sway back and forth.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
By elevating a process that is normally hidden from view and enveloping the "5AC," the piece traces Maison Margiela's philosophy of inverting basic codes. While the cubes are enclosed spaces, their rotation invites viewers into an infinitely expanding space.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
"5AC"
The name was inspired by "133t speak," and comes from coding "SAC," which means bag in French, to form "5AC."
Courtesy of Maison Margiela
Venue & Inquiries:
Maison Margiela Omotesando
Maison Margiela Omotesando
Address: GYRE 1F, 5-10-1 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Opening Hours: 11:00-20:00 (Irregular Holidays)
Telephone: 03-5778-0891
Courtesy of Maison MargielaSince its launch in 2016, the 5AC collection has been reinterpreted in various styles across seasons. Participants include artist duo Nerhol, consisting of graphic designer Yoshihisa Tanaka and sculptor Ryuta Iida; Shoko Otake, who specializes in woodblock prints; BIEN, whose work focuses on various mediums, primarily drawings; and NUNO | we+, a textile designer and design studio. This project reinterprets "5AC" through the lens of four Japanese artists.
Courtesy of Maison MargielaNerhol
Nerhol, an artist duo known for their paper sculptures made from layered sequential photographs, created "Canvas (Nusa)," a hacked canvas work. While reexamining Japanese culture through canvas, the duo felt compelled to return to hemp paper. Working with artisans, they crafted paper from the precious hemp fiber known as ooasa (hemp), shredded it, twisted it into thread, and wove the threads on a loom to create 100% hemp paper canvases. For Maison Margiela, this mind-bogglingly labor-intensive process is the very essence of layering.
Courtesy of Maison MargielaThe surface of the canvas, which varies in appearance depending on whether it is woven in a plain or jacquard weave, is rubbed and scraped until holes are created, and then layers of cowhide glue are applied. The outline and materials of the "5AC" bag emerge through the glittering glue on the surface and the roughly woven canvas. By placing the "5AC" within the space behind it, reflected in the mesh of the canvas, the concepts of the bag and the artwork are overlapped.
Courtesy of Maison MargielaOtake Shoko
Otake Shoko mainly works in woodblock prints, embodying scenes she sees in her daily life. In addition to creating her own artwork, she also provides her work for book illustrations and fashion textiles. In her work "HACKED PATCHED," she expresses the process of hacking into one's mind and the images that emerge are patched together and multiplied.
Courtesy of Maison MargielaThis mental patchwork, which is in line with the Maison's code "Memory of," combines different pieces into a single item, evoking memories of its function and story and discovering new value, is a work that also evokes memories in the viewer.
Courtesy of Maison MargielaBIEN
BIEN creates works in multiple media, including video, sculpture, instructional and installation, with a focus on unique drawing expressions influenced by animation and street culture. His works attempt to unravel the world woven together by the illusions of images and fiction created by humankind, and immutable material objects. "Visible observation for 5AC" features multiple MDF sculptures and the "5AC" Micro. Paintings and videos are intended to be viewed from a single vantage point, but by viewing them from different angles, we can escape the imaginary perception inherent in the object and see its real-world aspects, such as the paint or canvas lining. In other words, we can see the boundary between the material, imbued with an image, and the object as simply a material object. This also demonstrates that we cannot uniformly grasp the various facets of things.
Courtesy of Maison MargielaWith the "5AC" bag now available in a variety of sizes, the smaller bag's role as an accessory is emphasized. While retaining the shape of a bag, its movement, subverting existing concepts, overlaps with his sculpture series. Although we normally recognize the "5AC" as a "bag," if we remove that label, it becomes something enigmatic and elusive, something that cannot be categorized into a single genre, just like a sculpture; the purpose is for it to reappear as a foreign body.
Courtesy of Maison MargielaNUNO | we+
NUNO | we+ is a collaborative project launched in December 2022 by NUNO, a textile design studio led by Reiko Sudo that produces fabrics in Japan, and we+, a contemporary design studio founded by Toshiya Hayashi and Hokuto Ando. Their work, "Rotating Cube - Inverse Equation," uses three cubes to represent the production process of NUNO's "Swing Square" embroidered fabric, in which square embroidery pieces become part of the textile and sway back and forth.
Courtesy of Maison MargielaBy elevating a process that is normally hidden from view and enveloping the "5AC," the piece traces Maison Margiela's philosophy of inverting basic codes. While the cubes are enclosed spaces, their rotation invites viewers into an infinitely expanding space.
Courtesy of Maison Margiela"5AC"
The name was inspired by "133t speak," and comes from coding "SAC," which means bag in French, to form "5AC."
Courtesy of Maison MargielaVenue & Inquiries:
Maison Margiela Omotesando
Maison Margiela Omotesando
Address: GYRE 1F, 5-10-1 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Opening Hours: 11:00-20:00 (Irregular Holidays)
Telephone: 03-5778-0891
