Art Institute Chicago Features Issey Miyake, Greg Lynn, and Scholten & Baijings

Japanese designer Issey Miyake, architect Greg Lynn, and designers Scholten & Baijings are at the forefront of their respective fields and are well known for using research and innovation to drive new forms of architecture and design. 3 in 1: Contemporary Explorations in Architecture and Design, on view September 28, 2013 through January 5, 2014 in Galleries 283-285, presents a trio of discrete exhibitions which signals the ongoing experimentation of these visionary practitioners.

The first gallery space in 3 in 1 focuses on the far-ranging works of influential Japanese designer Issey Miyake, who launched Miyake Design Studios in 1970 and has built a myriad of imaginative brands that utilize technology to construct new structural systems and forms for a wide range of products, including everything from fashion to lighting. Two collections presented in the exhibition-the clothing line 132 5 and IN-El, a line of lamps for the Italian lighting manufacturer Artemide-have evolved from Reality Lab, a research and development laboratory established within Miyake's studio. Both collections were developed with the help of a mathematical computer program based on the concept of multi-dimensional geometric shapes in space that can be translated into clothing and other industrial products. The clothing line and lamps are made from a recycled PET material developed specifically for these applications and unfold from flat, two-dimensional geometric shapes to three-dimensional voluminous forms. Also presented in this exhibition are two works by designers inspired by Issey Miyake-Honey-Pop Armchair (2001) by Tokujin Yoshioka and Cabbage Chair (2007) by Oki Sato-that both demonstrate Miyake's enduring influence and how his works have inspired younger designers.

Los Angeles-based architect Greg Lynn, a pioneer of digital architecture practice and proponent of the "paperless" architecture studio, was one of the first to explore computer programming for creative development in his design and production process. His inventive use of computer-aided processes is evident in a wide range of projects including his design for the Korean Presbyterian Church of New York (1999), the Ravioli Chair for Vitra (2005), and silver flatware commissioned for Alessi. In 3 in 1, his Stranded Sears Tower (1992) is presented in its entirety for the first time. In his reinterpretation of the Chicago landmark now known as the Willis Tower, Lynn separated the nine structural tubes of the tower and dissected them into individual strands that he reoriented horizontally to create a supple, fluid architecture.Stranded Sears Tower, the first project Lynn worked on in his own practice, is composed of a model and a full set of 22 drawings, and it was the last of Lynn's designs developed fully by hand, though it exhibits strong formal ties to his later groundbreaking computer-aided work.

Dutch designers Scholten & Baijings take a disciplined approach to design, combining craft practices and industrial processes to rethink everyday objects. Known for material innovation and masterful use of color, they conjure the color studies of artists such as Anni and Josef Albers and the handicraft and manufacturing methods of designers Charles and Ray Eames. Designed specifically for the Art Institute, Colour Installation (2013) articulates the breadth of Scholten & Baijing's work by drawing connections between their design practice and their multiple collaborations with artisans and manufacturers. The duo's trademark employment of color is illustrated in this installation in the multilayered assemblage of pieces selected from across the life of the studio: the presentation includes designs for furnishings for Danish manufacturer HAY, tables for the Japanese artisanal wood producer Karimokou New Standard, a contemporary silver tea set for Georg Jensen, and Colour Porcelain (2012), re-imagined tableware for the Japanese firm 1616 Arita. Commissioned specially for 3 in 1, large-scale images by Dutch photographers Scheltens & Abbenes capture the relationships among works, emphasizing the pair's ability to generate beautifully creative expressions of quotidian objects.

At the forefront of their fields, Issey Miyake's Reality Lab, Greg Lynn, and Scholtens & Baijings pursue three distinct approaches, but their desire to solve complex design issues-and do so with visually arresting results-is singular.

3 in 1: Contemporary Explorations in Architecture and Design is curated by Zoë Ryan, John H. Bryan Chair and Curator of Architecture and Design, and Karen Kice, Neville Bryan Assistant Curator, Department of Architecture and Design.

This exhibition was made possible by the generous support of the Architecture & Design Society and the Celia and David Hilliard Fund.

Image: Scholten & Baijings. Colour Porcelain for 1616 / Arita Japan. © Scholten & Baijings 2012. Image courtesy of New York Times T Magazine.Photography Scheltens & Abbenes.