PORTLAND, Ore., United States—September 29, 2026—Portland Japanese Garden is excited to share that its final new art exhibition of 2026 will be Weaving Time: NUNO – Textiles of Tradition and Transformation, running from October 3 through February 14, 2027. Weaving Time showcases the awe-inspiring artistry of NUNO, the iconic Japanese textile design studio. NUNO’s immersive installations demonstrate fascinating threads of connection across daily life and contemporary art with fabrics that reflect tradition alongside modern materials and sensibilities.
Acclaimed Japanese Designer’s Works Featured
NUNO is led by Reiko Sudō, an award-winning and innovative designer whose works are in the permanent collections of New York’s Museum of Modern Art and Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, London’s Victoria & Albert Museum, and Tokyo’s National Museum of Modern Art. She has pioneered sustainable practices in fabric and clothing manufacturing through advising the international retail company, MUJI, as well as serving on the Japan Design Committee.
Site-Specific Art to Make for Memorable Garden Experience
Portland Japanese Garden, a natural vehicle through which to explore Japanese art and design, will be featuring NUNO’s groundbreaking textiles throughout its landscape:
- The Pavilion Gallery will feature a vibrant array of spinning textile sculptures suspended from the ceiling, each cube representing a different textile production region in Japan—a spatial installation designed in collaboration with contemporary design studio we+ and featuring a video capturing the textile creation process produced by Abstract Engine (NUNO Project Lead: Kazuhiro Ueno). There will also be 50 touchable textile samples, giving guests an immersive experience to better understand the nuance behind NUNO’s textiles.
- Outside on the Pavilion’s West Veranda, semi-translucent noren curtains will flutter from the eaves of the building’s roof. The textiles will respond to natural elements –waving in the breeze and filtering the autumnal sunlight– adding a new dimension to the already stunning view of the attraction’s Flat Garden.
- The Calvin and Mayho Tanabe Gallery will be offering the subtle and beautiful illumination of back-lit byō bu, or folding screens of semi-translucent white fabric affixed to bamboo frames, created through a collaboration between NUNO (team member Gaku Masui), designer Masafumi Tashiro, and master woodworker Chūzō Tozawa of Hinoki Kougei. The patterns featured in several of the textiles are inspired by rainfall, evoking the environment of the Pacific Northwest.
NUNO Weaves Tradition with Cutting-Edge Innovation
Named for the word meaning “cloth” in Japanese, the Tokyo-based NUNO is one of Japan’s most important contemporary textile companies. The studio was founded in 1984 by famed designer, Junichi Arai. In 1987, Reiko Sudō took over as design director. NUNO is known globally for its innovative work with textile artisans of Japan, weaving together old practices with new innovations to create groundbreaking new fabric designs. NUNO has created more than 2,500 textiles, all of which are produced in Japan and help sustain artisans and small textile manufacturers across the country.
Portland Japanese Garden would like to thank The Schnitzer Care Foundation, Catherine Sasanuma and Taisuke Sasanuma, David Sneider and Naomi Pollock, Ferguson Wellman Capital Management, and The Japan Foundation for their support of arts and culture programming.
- Spatial & Exhibition Design (Cubes): we+
- Video Production: Abstract Engine
- NUNO Byōbu Design Supervision: Masafumi Tashiro
- NUNO Byōbu Frame Craftsmanship: Chūzō Tozawa (Hinoki Kougei)
- NUNO Project Management & Byōbu Concept Lead: Gaku Masui (NUNO)
- NUNO Cube Project Lead: Kazuhiro Ueno (NUNO)
- NUNO Design Director: Reiko Sudō
Event Information
Weaving Time: NUNO – Textiles of Tradition and Transformation
October 3, 2026 – February 14, 2027
Portland Japanese Garden
611 SW Kingston Ave. Portland, OR 97205
(503) 223-1321 (main)
Cost: Included with Daily Admission
Hours & Admission found here
Visual Assets
Images can be found in this Dropbox folder. The photographer’s name is in the file name. Please stylize the credit as “Courtesy of Portland Japanese Garden, photo by [fill in name].” If no photographer is listed, “Courtesy of Portland Japanese Garden” will suffice. More images will be included once the installation is complete.
Media Contact
Will Lerner, Marketing and Communications Manager
(503) 542-9351 (office)
wlerner@japanesegarden.org
About Portland Japanese Garden
Portland Japanese Garden is a nonprofit organization originally founded in 1963 as a place for cross-cultural understanding following World War II. A hallmark in the City of Portland, the Garden was founded on the ideals of peace and mutual understanding between peoples and cultures. Portland Japanese Garden is considered the most authentic Japanese garden outside of Japan and the foremost Japanese cultural organization in North America.
About Japan Institute
Japan Institute was established in 2020 as a global cultural initiative of Portland Japanese Garden. This sibling organization is the programmatic arm of Portland Japanese Garden, allowing us to share and expand our cultural programs more broadly around the world, deepen international partnerships, and continue to engage diverse people in shared experiences and conversations about peace, beauty, and connection of nature.
Portland Japanese Garden & Japan Institute share the mission: Inspiring Harmony and Peace.