Studio Adrien Gardère

Reiko Sudo/Nuno and Studio Adrien Gardère were invited to install Koï Current in the main rotunda of the Musée national des arts asiatiques - Guimet, as part of the « Clemenceau, le Tigre et l’Asie » exhibition, and of the « Designer’s Days 2014 » festival.

Since the Edo period, the Japanese have flown «koi nobori» carp-shaped banners in their gardens. Carps swimming upstream against the current were symbols of strength and endurance, so the custom originated as a way of heralding the prowess of newborn boys.

Inspired by this ancient tradition, Reiko Sudo and Adrien Gardère conceived the idea of exhibiting Nuno Corporation’s exceptional textiles as a whirling school of modern-day «koi nobori» carp banners.

The Koi Current installation was created for the first time in 2008 for the International Festival « Japan: Culture+Hyperculture » at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC.