Categories
Mandala Lotus

Mandala Lotus No8


Mandala Lotus No8
2023

Lotus petals open in this world. The truth that turns 7 times and rises on the 8th. Courage and Patience. Walking, step by step.

Taffeta  Polyester / Embroidery thread

Categories
Mandala Lotus

Mandala Lotus No7


Mandala Lotus No7
2022

Lotus petals open in this world. The truth that turns 7 times and rises on the 8th. Courage and Patience. Walking, step by step.

Taffeta  Polyester / Embroidery thread

Categories
Mandala Lotus

Mandala Lotus No6


Mandala Lotus No6
2022

After darkness and evil are swallowed by the great flower of light, quietly, surely, slowly, blood vessels of light begin to flow.The veins of light pass through everything. New beginning.

Taffeta  Polyester / Embroidery thread

Categories
Mandala Lotus

Mandala Lotus No5


Mandala Lotus No5
2022

The power of light eats up all darkness and evil, and the flower of light blooms. Everything is swallowed up by the great flower of light.

Taffeta  silk / Embroidery thread

Categories
News

Creation Process

May all people in the world be content. May they see the lotus spark in all others, and may the light of love shine in our hearts. May all live in harmony.

Fukuko Ando

The Dress as a Sculpture

In my work, a piece of fabric is transformed into a dress through an intense and unbroken engagement with each wave of change in the fabric’s own swell and movement.

The starting point is a flat piece of fabric. Sewing a raised broderie into this flat surface introduces a new three-dimensional note, creating waves of movement and new shapes and swell as the fabric responds. 

I make a single cut into the new swell in the fabric. The fabric responds again and

I follow the fabric’s waves of movement intuitively. From action to response, the story of this dress is being written, moment to moment, as each change and response happens. 

My hands have to see and grasp the story that the fabric is telling. The fabric takes on a life of its own, with new mandalas flowering in it, one after another.

More complex shapes are created by cross cuts, twists in the fabric, new broderies.

After a long time, my hands become still. The dress is complete: a piece of fabric has become a living mandala.

I work so that different dimensions can flower one by one on the same piece of fabric, just as the petals of a lotus flower open one after another.

Like the cell and the body, we can zoom in to see the micro-mandalas sewn into the detail of the dress, and we can stand back to see the macro-mandala of the whole dress.

Fukuko Ando


A piece of fabric becomes a lotus mandala dress.

The fabric is like the soil in which to sow the seeds of the mandala.

The needle becomes the mandala seed.

Each stitch draws a new world.

Cutting the fabric brings forth a new dimensional space.

New petals open in a new space. A new life opens skyward.

The opening of a new life expresses the mandala consciousness. 

The fabric is imbued with consciousness.


Categories
Mandala Lotus

Mandala Lotus No4


Mandala Lotus No4
2022

The light of the blue rose reaches deep into the ground to open the stone door. Everything revives. Everything is resurrected.

Blue Rose / Blue light

Categories
Creation

Mandala Lotus

Mandala Lotus

Blessings of the Lotus Flower

I had an intuition in 2020 that there would be dresses to make over my lifetime.When I was little, I read the story of Chūjō-hime (747–775). And I was very impressed.I always remembered that I longed for the process that the lotus thread was pulled out, and when it touched flowers of various colors,  the thread was dyed like a dream and the mandala was completed.


Chūjō-hime is credited with weaving the Lotus Thread, Taima Mandala, a mandala depicting the cosmography of the Pure Land. It is said that she managed this miracle in a single night. Some versions of the story say that she was aided in the task by an apparition of the great spiritin response to her prayers. Other beliefs hold that she was herself an incarnation of Kannon. Kannon is the Buddhist bodhisattva associated with compassion, “goddess of mercy”.


At the beginning of creation, lotus flowers born from the swamps of the universe.A world of silence where various lotus mandalas continue to bloom and pray.In the center of the universe, the Creator God will prepare a new world.A world of eternal silence, lotus petals smiling gently like a goddess.Infinite prayers overlap across time and space.

当麻曼荼羅 Taima mandala
8th century mandala in Japanese Pure Land Buddhism.


As long as I have my life, how many mandala prayers can I weave?If I can make 48 bodies, I’m sure I dream of opening a new world of Maitreya.Maitreya is a bodhisattva who was promised to become next Buddha.It is said that Maitreya Bodhisattva will appear in the future 5,670 million years after the destruction of Gautama Siddhartha and rescue the humain being.

Chūjō-hime (中将姫, Chūjō-himeMiddle Captain Princess)

When I was little, I read the story of Chūjō-hime (747–775). And I was very impressed.I always remembered that I longed for the process that the lotus thread was pulled out, and when it touched flowers of various colors,  the thread was dyed like a dream and the mandala was completed.

Fukuko Ando

Mandala Lotus Series

Categories
Mandala Lotus

Mandala Lotus No3


Mandala Lotus No3
2021

The ritual fire becomes a flame. Purifying flowers in the burning time. The flower of flame burns.

Taffeta  Polyester / Embroidery thread

Categories
Mandala Lotus

Mandala Lotus No2


Mandala Lotus No2
2021

Mother crystal flower. Mother crystal flower that exists in the transparent wave of time. Mother crystal flowers make a lot of seeds. It is mother

Taffeta  silk / Embroidery thread

Categories
Mandala Lotus

Mandala Lotus No1


Mandala Lotus No1
2020 – 2021

Swamp of time. The moment when a miracle flower is born from the green light. The light of the source of creation

Taffeta silk / Embroidery thread

Categories
Exhibit

WEAVING (THE) COSMOS

Fukuko Ando, who worked and lived in Paris for the past 25 years,
created a first series of 140 dolls in crochet during the summer of 2005.

Having recently moved back to Japan, during the Autumn of 2019 she created a new series of dolls which is now presented in this exhibition

( Lisbon / Year : 2020 )

ORIENT MUSEUM

(Museu do Oriente) Lisbon

Year 2020

WEAVING (THE) COSMOS

The Japanese artist and fashion designer Fukuko Ando, who worked and lived in Paris for the past 25 years, created a first series of 140 dolls in crochet during the summer of 2005. Having recently moved back to Japan, she produced a new series of 112 dolls which is now presented for the first time in this exhibition, alongside with a part of the 2005 production, previously shown in Tokyo and Paris. They are 25 variations of the seven sisters of the Greek mythology after which the seven brightest stars forming the Pleiades were named: Alcyone, Merope, Maia, Electra, Taygete, Celaeno, Sterope.

The artist endowed each doll with different codes and messages, based on the concept according to which “no human bodies are the same, and yet we are all essentially united in the cosmic dance of the universe”. Perfecting her technical skills while collaborating with Christian Dior and Christian Lacroix, in Paris, Ando went on to create her own collections. Her work is made out of the finest fabrics and materials, through a long, unique and rigorous manual process. Ando’s dresses reflect her deeply spiritual and mystical vision of life.

The 12 Dresses ensemble refers to the four fundamental forces that govern all interactions in the Universe. Consciously eschewing fashion’s traditional patterns and procedures for confectioning a garment, Fukuko Ando creates dresses that first and foremost respect and follow the shapes of the human body. Skilfully harmonising classical creative techniques with the natural form and movement of the body, she sublimates both. Through her wearable and danceable luminous and colourful visual poems, Ando explores the secret magic of lively matters with which she re-enchants the haute couture, intertwining being and appearing, ancient wisdom and a joyful spontaneous infancy spirit.

The Japanese born designer Fukuko Ando has a very personal vision of fashion and of the creative art of garment design. As her unique process and style have developed over time, Ando has stepped beyond the usual confines of Haute Couture to explore how the pieces she creates may express or manifest different aspects of our cultures, of our relations to nature and of our spiritualities.

With her creative imagination, Ando explores the invisible and energetic dimensions of the matters she uses. Confectioning the dresses directly on wood mannequins surrounded by mirrors, she is intuitively guided to follow a natural and fluid yet sophisticated movement that consists of folds, rays, grooves, veins and ribs, volutes and irregular curves forming a complex global structure. Differing from straight lines, repetitive geometrical patterns and flattened shapes, her dresses are characterized by an organic, ever-changing dynamism. Thus, several heterogeneous effects are produced such as asymmetrical reliefs and protruding volumes, elongated or truncated planes, transparencies, reflections, opacities and openings. A certain play of shadows and shimmering lights is also skilfully produced in order to reveal the quintessence of each piece, visually manifested through singular forms, colours and textures to wear. When one looks at the pieces closely, their poetic vibration can be felt.

Throughout her career, Ando used an equally astounding presentation display. Instead of the traditional models’ walks on the podium, she regularly worked in collaboration with professional dancers and choreographers to exhibit her creations.

12 Dresses

Paris, France, 2008-2012.

Made between 2008 and 2012, the 12 Dresses ensemble explores the tension between stillness, movement and flow, between infinite variation and oneness. In a very innovative and singular way, Fukuko Ando fuses design and haute couture with the art of sculpture, as she elevates the fine materials and garments to symbolic and mysterious apparitions. With a distinctive mystical twist, Ando expresses her deep spirituality through these twelve dresses. Each of them is conceived as a codified message, an in-depth journey from the maze of the atomically tiny to the astronomically vast.

As indicated by their titles, and according to a peculiar syncretism between Kabbalah, Christianity and Shintoism, the whole ensemble contains numerous references ranging from ancient alchemy and esoteric myths about origins, spiritual quests and evolution, to the notion of harmonia mundi, along with the four primary elements and the stages of human life. All dresses are characterised by their richly handmade embroideries, their uniqueness and magnificent vibrational presence.

you can visit the official site of this collection by following this link:
https://www.12robes.com/

Katherine Sirois / Curator


Fukuko Ando / Dolls and Dresses
Jorge Govea / Sound Design

Joana Belard da Fonseca / General Coordination
Katherine Sirois / Curator
Pedro Gonçalves / Design
Sara Fevereiro / Translation
Vprint – Produção de Imagem Lda. / Lettering

David Paquete, Maria Vieira, Helena Solano, Assembly and, Jorge Tomaz, Carlos Sobral / Assembly and Lighting
Collaboration:
Câmara Municipal de Lisboa, MUDE- Museu do Design e da Moda

Special Thanks to:
Iñes Correia / Pedro Gomes / Fundação Ricardo Espirito Santo


Inauguration:

20th February 2020 until 13th September

Categories
Accessoires Crochet 

Golden dolphin

Imagine a golden dolphin full of joy and jumping happily

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of Cotton, wool, mohair, angora, blade, and lace



Dolphin Mystery

Year / 2006

Dolphin Wisdom

Year / 2006

Dolphin Smile

Year / 2006

Dolphin Voice

Year / 2006

Dolphin Song

Year / 2006

Dolphin Light

Year / 2006

Dolphin Jump

Year / 2006

Dolphin Heart

Year / 2006

Dolphin Waterfall

Year / 2006

Dolphin Joy

Year / 2006

Dolphin Path

Year / 2006

#golden
#dolphin
#accessories

Categories
Accessoires Crochet 

Harmony

Summer breeze and energetic power

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of Cotton, silk, pearl, amber, and black stone



Summer / Time

Year / 2005

Summer / Sea

Year / 2005

Summer / Wind

Year / 2005

Summer / Smile

Year / 2005

Summer / Light

Year / 2005

Summer / Song

Year / 2005

Summer / Dance

Year / 2005

Summer / Fly

Year / 2005

#harmony
#accessories
#summer

Categories
Performance

DWM Mexico 04

For my first time in Mexico I was invited by Cedim Design School at Mexico Design Week. I created a Performance with Mexican modern dancers.

( Fukuko Ando )

DWM Mexico

Year / 2004

Special thanks to:
Alfredo Salazar and Juan 2Santos

Categories
Exhibit

Mostra Oro

Under the theme of gold, each creator expresses the shine, color, and texture of luxury gold.

( Milan Italy )

Made of Wool silk cotton, beads lace cord and cord blade

Year / 2004

#milan
#italy
#mostraoro

Categories
Collection

CRYSTAL

The movement of the crystal with various light reflections on the body shows a multidimensional expression.

( Fukuko Ando )

Categories
Crochet and Spangle

Gold Glitter

A dress made from lace in a lamé fabric. The contrast between the transparent part of the lace and the heavy and dense lamé fabric

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of Sequin and lace

Year / 2003

#crochet&spangle
#white
#glitter

Categories
Crochet and Spangle

White Glitter

A dress made from lace in a lamé fabric. The contrast between the transparent part of the lace and the heavy and dense lamé fabric

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of Sequin and lace

Year / 2003

#crochet&spangle
#white
#glitter

Categories
Transparency transparency long

Truth

The seeds of truth remain in the soil as the flowers wither. The moonlight leaves silver waves on the surface of the river. After the flower is over, however, the seed sleeps in the soil. The moonlight sends silver waves to protect the truth in the seed. The time will come when new flowers will bloom.  

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of lace and silk muslin

Year / 2008

#truth
#transparency

Categories
Transparency transparency long

Goddess

Like a goddess singing with her hands wide open in the temple  

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of Cotton muslin

Year / 1999

#goddess
#transparency

Categories
coats

Velvet Gray

The sewn lines create a constructive and unique shape  

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of gray vervet

Year / 1995

#velvetgray

Categories
coats

Velvet Purple

The sewn lines create a constructive and unique shape  

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of purple vervet

Year / 1995

#velvetpurple

Categories
Crochet and Spangle

Galactic Sound

The sound of the Milky Way floating in the galaxy 

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of Silk,Cotton and Crystal

Year / 2007

#crochet&spangle #galacticsound

Categories
stitching

Red Square

Pin-tuck expresses a natural dancing movement without cutting the fabric. The Big gold button is the point.

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of Silk

Year / 1994

#stitching
#bluesquare

Categories
stitching

Blue Square

Pin-tuck expresses a natural dancing movement without cutting the fabric. The Big silver button is the point.

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of Silk

Year / 1994

#stitching
#bluesquare

Categories
Crochet and Spangle

New Force Top

Power and power to attract strongly  

New Force Dress and New Force Top
( Fukuko Ando )

Made of cotton

Year / 1996

#crochet&spangle #newforcetop

Categories
Crochet and Spangle

New Force Dress

Power and power to attract strongly  

New Force Dress and New Force Top
( Fukuko Ando )

Made of cotton

Year / 1996

#crochet&spangle #newforcedress

Categories
Crochet and Spangle

Plant

Mysterious earth of beautiful plants  

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of wool, silk and cotton

Year / 1996

#crochet&spangle
#plant

Categories
Crochet and Spangle

Sun

To the goddess who shines like the Sun  

( Fukuko Ando )

Made of silk, cotton, beads, cords, blades and sequins

Year / 2001

#crochet&spangle
#sun

Categories
Crochet and Spangle

Phoenix

Exhibition: Sayoko kobe fashion museum – Kobe Japon   

SAYOKO Texte Robe Phénix 2001


In the 21st century What can you share? Everything has come to end and has been reborn. Renaissance. I can say with much gratitude and happiness. Now, Only who you are in true. A Phenix, I would like to see you reborn. An open heart, a released body, a freely flying phoenix. Love, New love is growing in you With deeper understanding and stronger senses. You accept everything with a smile on your face. 21st century, I am happy if we can share a much deeper and broader love.


Made of silk, cotton, beads and sequins

Year / 2001

#crochet&spangle #phoenix