Wrap artist: a retrospective remix for Max Mara embraces body and Seoul

Max Mara has commissioned London-based Korean artist Yiyun Kang for its latest exhibition, ‘Coats!’, being held in her home town of Seoul. Kang, known for her large-scale, site-specific digital mapping projections, has remixed imagery from the Max Mara archive into her installation, ‘Deep Surface’, which projects animated, vibrant patterns onto a specially-constructed 20m dome, designed by architects Migliore + Servetto and located in Zaha Hadid’s Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP). The dome arches atmospherically over a central space divided into seven different rooms, each representing a different era in Max Mara’s past, from the 1950s to the 2000s.
The starting point for the exhibition, the concept of the perfect coat, ‘combines the idea of surfaces, from the way the fabric folds, to the way it meets the skin, and sits on the body’, says Kang. The dome itself also reflects the sensations of being wrapped in a coat. ‘It’s an environment that really immerses the human body.’
A digital render of Migliore + Servetto’s Cupola that will house Yiyun Kang’s installation. Photography: © DDP Museum Seoul 2017 and © Migliore + Servetto Architects
'Max Mara is more than fashion,' says the label's creative director Ian Griffiths. 'Our coats have an renowned cultural value that merit artistic exploration.' The Italian fashion house was founded in 1951, with a principle of ‘making the ordinary extraordinary.’ This has meant taking everyday items and transforming them into garments that can completely revive daily experience.
'For me, a perfect example of this cultural conversation, was our collaboration in 1999 with Goldsmiths,' adds Griffiths. 'Together with artists Volker Eichelmann and Ruth Maclennan’s, our Designer Coat Swap invited people to make offers for a classic wool and cashmere 101801 coat. The results offered a fascinating dissection of the coats' complex layers of meaning and symbolic worth.'
As part of her research, Kang visited Max Mara's archive in Reggio Emilia in Italy. ‘I was mesmerised by the collection – it’s not only about the object, but about human history, about the Maramotti family, who founded the brand, and the history of Reggio Emilia, about men and women’s fashion in the past, present and future. It’s alive and breathing.’
Kang, who usually works alone, admits that exchanging ideas with a large team from the fields of fashion and architecture was a tricky transition but ultimately enlightening. ‘I remember Luigi Maramotti mentioning the idea of collective creativity – for him it was a real focus because not a single product can be completed without the help of many people.’ Griffiths points similarly to ‘a great synergy’ with Kang. ‘Her installation reflects the monumentality of the brand’s image, while showing that human element.’
What does Kang hope local visitors will take away from the experience? ‘As a South Korean, everyone is aware that we’re in a very politically tense situation. Through this amazing collaboration I hope to create some soothing moments for the people who live in Seoul during this time.’
A version of this article appeared in the December 2017 issue of Wallpaper* (W*225)
Yiyun Kang at the DDP wearing a look designed by Max Mara to celebrate its exhibition in Seoul. Ian Griffiths was inspired to create the look on a trip to Seoul where he witnessed the presentation of food in Yughee (handcrafted Korean brasswear). Says Griffiths, ’Yughee encapsulates quality craftsmanship perfected over generations, like the Max Mara coat.
Max Mara was founded in 1951, with a principle of ‘making the ordinary extraordinary.’ The house's wool and cashmere coat is a signature of design of the house, and modern wardrobes
The exhibition brings together fabric samples, magazine editorials and finished silhouettes to convey the artistic heritage of Max Mara's coat designs
'Coats!' charts Max Mara's outerwear silhouettes over time, from belted trenchcoats to fur-trimmed belted shapes
INFORMATION
’Coats!’ runs from 28 November - 12 December. For more information, visit the Dongdaemun Design Plaza website and the Max Mara website
ADDRESS
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Dongdaemun Design Plaza
281 Eulji-ro
Jung-gu
Seoul
South Korea
Charlotte Jansen is a journalist and the author of two books on photography, Girl on Girl (2017) and Photography Now (2021). She is commissioning editor at Elephant magazine and has written on contemporary art and culture for The Guardian, the Financial Times, ELLE, the British Journal of Photography, Frieze and Artsy. Jansen is also presenter of Dior Talks podcast series, The Female Gaze.
-
Designer Danny Kaplan’s Manhattan showroom is also his apartment: the live-work space reimagined
Danny Kaplan’s Manhattan apartment is an extension of his new showroom, itself laid out like a home; he invites us in, including a first look at his private quarters
By Diana Budds Published
-
Ulla Johnson’s collaboration with artist Julie Hamisky on the A/W 2025 runway is blooming lovely
Ulla Johnson and French artist Julie Hamisky have created 12 new jewellery pieces for the designer's A/W 2025 runway
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Tasneem Sarkez's heady mix of kitsch, Arabic and Americana hits London
Artist Tasneem Sarkez draws on an eclectic range of references for her debut solo show, 'White-Knuckle' at Rose Easton
By Zoe Whitfield Published
-
The story behind Max Mara’s sensual Lisbon resort show
Drawing inspiration from the author, intellectual and activist Natália Correia, Ian Griffiths tells Wallpaper* the story behind his sensually minded Max Mara Resort 2023 collection, shown last night in the gardens of Lisbon’s Calouste Gulbenkian Collection
By Jack Moss Last updated
-
Milan Fashion Week A/W 2021: designers riff on romp and relaxation
Milan Fashion Week offered a wardrobe for life after lockdown, by brands including Fendi, Prada, Salvatore Ferragamo, Valentino and Giorgio Armani
By Laura Hawkins Last updated
-
Gucci's Seoul show considers radical perspectives on ‘otherness’
The fashion label sponsors ‘No Space, Just a Place, which invites guests to consider radical perspectives on ‘otherness’, led by Tunisian-born curator Myriam Ben Salah
By Andy St Louis Last updated
-
Max Mara A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins Last updated
-
Max Mara S/S 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins Last updated
-
Max Mara A/W 2019 Milan Fashion Week Women's
By Laura Hawkins Last updated
-
Eath Library skincare boutique in Seoul is inspired by Korea’s traditional apothecaries
By Elly Parsons Last updated
-
For S/S 2019, Seoul Fashion Week puts menswear on the map
By Dal Chodha Last updated