October Gallery Museum
Connecting People with Art since 1985
A lamp made with braided cords that was a collaboration between South African artist-designer Atang Tshikare and Japanese artisan Tomoyuki Matsuda © Noritoshi Kuroki Yamollo
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A few years ago, the Japanese creative director Hideki Yoshimoto and the Italian curator Maria Cristina Didero set about introducing non-Japanese designers to the intricacies of that country’s craftsmanship. The results went on show in Tokyo and London. Now, the second exhibition from this initiative returns to the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, once again under the title Craft x Tech, and reveals what happens when traditional techniques meet contemporary design thinking.
“The idea is for each edition to be focused on one region,” Didero says. While in 2024, that was the mountainous Tohoku area, for 2026, it is Tokai. “Tokai is one of the country’s most industrialised parts,” Didero continues. “Tohoku was rural, more traditional.”
Didero asserts that the virtuosic crafts—lacquer, ceramic, wood carving, weaving—are not in danger in Japan. “The project is more about interaction, not preservation,” she says. “My mantra has always been that design is not about chairs, it’s about people. We’re provoking communication here.”
For the designers, it has meant being pushed out of their comfort zones. The London-based Canadian Philippe Malouin, for example, was matched with an enamel master specialising in a centuries-old technique. “Philippe is quite a Brutalist designer, but we made him take on the challenge of decoration,” Didero says.
The South African Atang Tshikare works at the intersection of art and design, particularly addressing Tswana heritage. In Japan, he was introduced to the technique called iga kumihimo, where vividly dyed silks are braided into shimmering cords. In Japan, these would be used to fasten a kimono but Tshikare subverted this functional nature to make a lamp with an anthropomorphic form.
Though an initiative driven by experimentation and discovery, the works are also on sale as limited editions. The exhibition is at the V&A until 30 September.
A show at the Minneapolis Institute of Art displays more than 120 Japanese textiles made from the stuff of nature
Fires at the Pitti Palace and Hampton Court have led to this survey of baroque sculptor, Grinling Gibbons
From gunmakers to silversmiths
Gilbert and George and Mickey Wolfson are among the enthusiastic collectors
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The October Gallery Museum places art in the community. Here are partner locations where you can have an art experience.
Some locations art is installed inside buildings and visits are during regular business hours. Other locations are by appointment only. Schools are not open to the public. In addition, we have many outdoor installations that you can enjoy around the clock. Check each location below for details. Tours are available upon request. 215-352-3114.
Here are some of our patrons that have donated art and art related items installed as part of our Art in the Community program. Thanks!
Watson and Sonia Brown
Stephanie Daniel
Chad Cortez Everett
Gail Gaines
Dr. Darryl J. Ford
Kelly R. Harrison
Deborah Kelly
Betty Ann D. Lawrence
David Lawrence
Leon McDuffie
Michael Muhammad
Jay R. Ogilvie
Marjorie H. Ogilvie
Junious Rhone, Sr.
Robin Rhone
Shirley Rhone
April Rice
Karen Roach
Monica Rocha
Steve Satell
Deborah Stephens
Staci Watson
Stephanie R. West
Horace Wright
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Art and art related items may be returned to October Gallery in good condition within twenty (20) days of the purchase for store credit ONLY – unless otherwise stated on an invoice.
Items on layaway or even items paid for will be held by the gallery for no more than ninety (90) days from the original sale date. Refund is in store credit ONLY – unless other stated on an invoice.
