Perfectly Imperfect

Christina Kim, clothing designer, artist and founder of design studio dosa, was commissioned to create two works of both beauty and function for the Museum's transformation: liquid2solid and sugi / kuruminoki. Her focus on zero waste has created a system for creative reuse, drawing on traditional handwork techniques, patchwork, and large-scale collaborations with communities around the world. In 2018 she received the prestigious Cooper Hewitt National Design Award, Fashion Design. Needless to say, she's amazing.

Christina's work liquid2solid is a series of flowing temporary curtains located around the Gallery level. Made from Dyneema®, a technical fabric often used for tents, the curtain is layered, embellished, and hand-stitched to perfect imperfection. Her hand-stitched seams travel haphazardly across the translucent textile both revealing and obscuring the view through to the other side. This functional work of art is used while the galleries are transitioning exhibitions providing visitors a glimpse into the behind-the-scenes work at the Museum.

Around the corner from liquid2solid, in the Museum's Founders Gallery, Christina created two cut paper interlayers to cover the windows titled sugi / kuruminoki. Located in the room’s circular window, sugi was inspired by George Nakashima’s Cedar of Lebanon drawing, while kuruminoki covers the room's rectangular window and was inspired by Nakashima’s Walnut tree drawing. Both works are a nod to the room's beloved Mira Nakashima table, Frenchman's Cove III, and conoid chairs. Using papel piacdo techniques on handmade Japanese paper, both works were meticulously crafted to allow just the right amount of light to enter the room.