Zawa Zawa

Published by the Nuno Corporation

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The sixth edition in the Nuno series of fabric developments deals with the theme of sounds made by fabrics that subconsciously capture much of our attention.

Review

The title roughly translates as "the murmuring of the unknown". This sixth edition published by the Tokyo-based creative fabric studio Nuno links fabric designs to sounds. In his foreword, Arto Lindsay remarks:
"What's that noise? Unidentifiable and unnerving, far off amidst the bustle of the city or from the depths of the forest, we hear something. And almost immediately there arise strange distress and expectation. Whether the rumblings of faceless urban crowds or the rustling of creatures through the underbrush, those zawa zawa sounds set us on edge... Zawa zawa is the bump that brings things in the night. Indistinct yet laden with tonal nuances that scratch at the back of the mind. The fabrics gathered here under zawa zawa are a mixed bag of strange and
diverse styles and tastes. Like the murmurs of diverse phenomena from everywhere and nowhere, they arrest us with their sheer irreducibility and power to suggest."
Such a poetic introduction makes us view the 27 fabrics introduced in a different light. They are indeed unusual but not loud. There is a series of open weavings made from wool and rayon, and then again there are textured rayon and cotton fabrics. What we miss is a description of how they were created! A weaving called "Shutters" is described in more detail: it consists of thin tapes sewn onto water-soluble fabric. Nuno managed to mass-produce such fabrics on a cord embroidery machine. The "Rubber Band" series shows how rubber bands can inspire fabric design. Finally a number of patterned cotton and polyester double weaves are introduced. Again, they lack any description….

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