Why the NIGO exhibition at the Design Museum should be top of your list of things to do in London this spring
The quietly maximalist genius who built hype culture from the ground up gets his flowers and a life-size Japanese tea house at the Design Museum.
I’ll be the first to (shamefully) admit that I didn’t know that KENZO, A Bathing Ape, Billionaire Boys Club and HUMAN MADE all had one man in common. If you’re the same (no judgement here!), then it might be a good idea to check out the Nigo: From Japan with Love exhibition at the Design Museum this spring.
Founding father of ‘hype culture’, streetwear designer and marketing maverick NIGO is being celebrated at the Design Museum from May to December, in a heartfelt and candid exhibition that weaves through his life. The exhibition is split into four sections: The Future is in the Past, Evolution, The NIGO Effect and New Traditions, containing 600 objects from NIGO’s personal archives. 600 personal objects may sound like a lot, but not when you compare it to the 10,000 total personal archives NIGO has amassed. From one sentimentalist to another, I salute you (how is this man not a Taurus?).
The exhibition begins with a recreation of NIGO’s 1980s teenage bedroom, including 300 items that shaped the creative spanning across clothes, toys and WWII memorabilia, before delving into his early work with A Bathing Ape and marketing collaborations with MAC, Pepsi and Disney, to name a few. Being credited with breaking down the barrier between streetwear and luxury led NIGO to figures like Pharell, who then helped him explore the intersection of music and fashion with a BAPE record label and new clothing partnership, which is also explored in Evolution.
As for the rest of the exhibition, this is dedicated to celebrating NIGO’s life after he became a cultural icon, but parallels the objects he cherished from childhood with his work as an adult. There’s also a life-size Japanese tea house (made in collaboration with NOT A HOTEL), at the end too, because nothing screams maximalist like an architectural venture made specifically for an exhibition. Get you a man who can do everything, I guess.
Credits:
Images courtesy of Design Museum
Words: Cable Writers
