In Praise of Ma: Emptiness and the Space Within
The Parodi Costume Collection presents In Praise of Ma: Emptiness and the Space Within, an
exhibition spotlighting the radical shift in fashion initiated by Japanese designers during the
early 1980s. Designers Rei Kawakubo, Issey Miyake, and Yohji Yamamoto challenged Western
conventions with fluid, movement-driven shapes, and the use of black and neutral fabrics, often
in raw or distressed textures. This ground-zero approach to design emerged from conceptual
principles of aesthetics — foundational to Japan’s cultural identity and daily life.
Curated by Annie Dellepiane and Francisca Parodi, In Praise of Ma explores four
foundational concepts — Ma (間), the space in-between; Hi (秘), shadow and concealment; So
(素), essence and rawness; and Ha (破) rupture and transformation. Garments are presented
within installations inspired by East Asian culture and Zen Buddhism, composed to create a
unified work of art — a Gestalt that proposes indeterminacy, emptiness, and contemplation as
alternative modalities to fashion curation.
“In Praise of Ma is an exhibition that aims at representing layers of beauty not easily
accessible through conventional fashion curation methods, hoping to inspire a mystical
pause- what Jun’ichiro Tanizaki refers to as a “moment of trance.” The conceptual
structure underlying the works of Kawakubo, Miyake and Yamamoto are presented as
messages that expose beauty in the precariousness and ambiguity of materiality,
and the infifinite possibilities of garments extending in space and time. Parodi Costume
Collection pays tribute to this “silent music,” as it invites its audience to share a
slower experience of fashion history, one that lies somewhere beyond the boundaries
of language and immediate rational thought.”
Gonzalo Parodi
Director
Images courtesy of Parodi Costume Collection