See more objects with the tag metallic, art, domestic interiors, experimentation, curving line, bold.

See more objects with the color darkslategrey grey darkgrey darkslategrey or see all the colors for this object.

Object Timeline

1989

  • Work on this object began.

1990

  • We acquired this object.

2012

2013

2014

2024

  • You found it!

Textile, Big Wave 2

This is a Textile. It was designed by Junichi Arai. It is dated 1989 and we acquired it in 1990. Its medium is nylon slit film, polyester and its technique is plain weave, patterned with tied-resist dyeing. It is a part of the Textiles department.

Junichi Arai is indisputably one of the world’s foremost innovators in fabric and textile design. He was born in the city of Kiryu, Japan, an important center for textile production that boasts over 1,000 years of traditional silk-making. As the sixth generation of a mill-owning family, Arai learned historical Japanese weaving techniques for obis and kimonos. In 1984 he founded the Nuno Corporation, a company and retailer wholly devoted to fabric - combining old practices with new technologies in innovative and unexpected ways.
Composed of silver and purple nylon and polyester, Big Wave 2 is woven, tied and dyed. The name denotes the undulating purple wave that seems to surge and swell across the fabric. Shimmering silver and deep amethyst tones enliven the textile in an organically haptic and sculptural manner. While the textile demonstrates his respect for traditions of the past, it also embodies his spirited proclivity for experimentation - providing new ways of seeing and interpreting color, light, surface and texture.

This object was featured in our Object of the Week series in a post titled Big Wave 2.

It is credited Gift of Arai Creation System.

  • Sidewall, Tie-Dye
  • hand-dyed and folded japanese paper.
  • Gift of Barbara White.
  • 2000-64-1
  • Sidewall, Tie-Dye
  • hand-dyed and folded japanese paper.
  • Gift of Barbara White.
  • 2000-64-2

Its dimensions are

H x W: 602 x 121.9 cm (19 ft. 9 in. x 48 in.)

Cite this object as

Textile, Big Wave 2; Designed by Junichi Arai (Japanese, 1932 - 2017); Japan; nylon slit film, polyester; H x W: 602 x 121.9 cm (19 ft. 9 in. x 48 in.); Gift of Arai Creation System; 1990-82-2

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian’s Terms of Use page.

For higher resolution or commercial use contact ArtResource.

If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18635009/ |title=Textile, Big Wave 2 |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=24 April 2024 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>