Who would have ever thought that a material designed to save the Dutch people would someday be used in football stadiums? This is just one of the surprising developments displayed at “Extreme Textiles: Designing for High Performance,” opening tomorrow at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum.

Included in the exhibit – the first of its kind devoted to the use of textile fibers and structures in design – is a large square of faux turf called the Enkamat. In 1953, the Netherlands endured its worst-ever natural disaster: a series of storms and floods that killed thousands of people and livestock and destroyed 500 kilometers of dykes. The resultant nationwide reconstruction plan was far more ambitious, however, than the only materials available – simple jute sandbags – so the government called on an industrial company, now known as Colbond, to create a series of synthetic fibers. Among the many innovations developed was Enkalon, a sealant for covering banks. First used in 1962, Enkalon in turn laid the groundwork (so to speak) for the Enkamat, a soil-erosion protection mat launched in 1973 and still used to this day.

A sample of the Enkamat’s three-dimensional matrix of entangled, fused Nylon 6 filaments will be on display at the Cooper-Hewitt alongside a generous trove of inventions created by artists, designers, scientists, and engineers and curated by Matilda McQuaid, head of the textiles department. Organized according to their high-performance characteristics – stronger, lighter, faster, smarter, safer – 150 objects in all will be arranged throughout the museum campus, representing a wide range of applications including architecture, apparel, medicine, and aerospace.

Many of the creations are surprisingly beautiful. The bio-implantable device for reconstructive shoulder surgery is as delicate and lovely as a snowflake. The Japanese fishing net – a massive, undulating wave of machine made knotless polyester netting – evokes the sea itself. Others are breathtaking in their strength and vitality. The Cheetah Flex-Foot made of plain woven carbon-fiber epoxy resin was worn by the Paralympic gold medalist Marlon Shirley; a photograph of the runner bounding down a track is enough to convert the most resolute synthetic-phobe. Also impressive is an inflatable support beam that looks like nothing more than a giant straw secured to the ground in the shape of an arc, yet dangles an entire car from its center – just another of the astounding feats made possible by textile advancements.

“Extreme Textiles: Designing for High Performance” tomorrow through January 15, 2006, at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, 2 E. 91st St., 212-849-8400.