Page 46 - Art Almanac (February 2020)

Collecting Comme The Four Letter Word

National Gallery of Victoria Artbank
Until 26 July, 2020 Until 14 February, 2020

Melbourne Sydney

Melbourne, arguably our fashion capital, is ‘The Four Letter Word’ ponders the question,
host to Australia’s first survey exhibition of ‘What is love?’ Sophia Cai, as part of Artbank’s
Comme des Garçons, which features works emerging curators program, selected artworks
from designer Rei Kawakubo’s five decades of from the Artbank collection as well as some on
practice – a pioneering career, which aspired loan, to present this visual exploration of love
‘to make clothes that didn’t exist before’. in all its forms.
Appreciate Kawakubo’s first presentation in
Paris in 1981 to recent designs such as the Paintings, prints, photographs and video
2014 Blood and Roses collection. This special interpret the notions of love with articulations
exhibition has been made possible by the of intimacy, self-love, vulnerability, doubt,
generous donation and loan from collector fear, identity and desire by artists including
Takamasa Takahashi. Shivanjani Lal, Brendan Huntley, Anastasia
Klose and Doreen Chapman, among others.

Rei Kawakubo, (designer), Comme des Garçons, Tokyo, (fashion Tori Ferguson, lungs and heart, 2011, cotton embroidery on cotton
house) Japan established 1969, cape, shorts, socks and boots, 2014 handkerchief, 44 x 44cm
‘Blood and Roses collection spring–summer 2015’ (detail) Courtesy the artist and Artbank, Sydney
Collection of Takamasa Takahashi
Courtesy the artist and National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
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