Bottega Veneta x Theaster Gates: Iconic Leather Weaving Techniques on view at the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo

Fashion fans know that Bottega Veneta's creative director Matthiew Blazy is an avid art collector. And whenever he can, the designer supports artists close to his heart, whether it’s commissioning their works for the show venue (you remember the 400 chairs signed by Gaetano Pesce at the SS23 show), or participating in their art projects (currently Bottega Veneta is sponsoring French artist Pierre Huyghe’s solo exhibition “Liminal” in Punta della Dogana in Venice, on view until November 24). His latest idea was to propose to American multidisciplinary artist Theaster Gates to use the leather know-how of Bottega Veneta’s artisans and see where it could bring them. The result of the collaboration are these stunning sculptures, called “Bottega Yaki”, crafted from wood-fired stoneware and embellished with leather weaving by Bottega Veneta, all made by hand in the Venetian atelier of the brand. Mind-blowing!

The sculptures are part of the Theaster Gates’ solo exhibition, currently on view at the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo. Entitled “Afro-Mingei”, in reference to the artist's vision, based on his life journey: born in Chicago, he used to study pottery inTokoname, Aichi Prefecture, as part of a residency for international artists back in 2004. And since then he has always been inspired by the Japanese philosophy of the Mingei (transletd literally as “arts of the people”, Mingei is a century-old movement that aimed to elevate “folk” art by unnamed craftspeople to the level of art), fusing it with theaesthetics of the “Black Is Beautiful” cultural concept that played a significant part in the American civil rights movement. So, with “Afro-Mingei” Gates brings Black Chicago to the world, giving the centre stage to the voices that have been unseen for centuries.

The exhibition at the Mori Art Museum will be open until September 1.

Text: Lidia Ageeva