Concept : Gothic Oriental “Empress” Hanfu
The Protaganist – The Painting:
This dress was created and completed in 2024 as a project after winning the Arte Laguna Prize 2023 Venice for Art Residency. The creation requirement by Nong Yuan International Art Village (NY20+), Chengdu, Sichuan, was to incorporate the Ba Shu culture of Sichuan into my painting.
Hence my creation concept was based on the following :-
A. The Sichuan’s ancient Golden Sunbird motif
B. Painting 2 panels of 4 seasons of the breathtaking scenery of lakes in Jiuzhaiguo.
Titled “Four Seasons of Jiuzhaiguo” this batik medium painting is my first attempt to paint scenery looking more like an impressionism artwork. Each season is painted within a circle surrounded by sunbirds signifying energy and unity between man and nature. And the 4 circles are framed in between 2 panels of stylized dragon motifs in mirror image (one going upward and the other going downward – 2024 being year of the Dragon). These panels serve to form squares enclosing each season.
In Chinese art and culture circles and squares are highly significant because they represent the fundamental concept of heaven as round and earth as square, symbolizing harmony between the celestial and earthly realms. Often reflecting the balance of yin and yang within Chinese philosophy; square representing stability, order and masculinity while circle signifies fluidity, wholeness and femininity.
The 2 panels of 4 seasons were sewn onto olive green organza panels first
and then sewn onto the lower portion of the hanfu on top part only, rendering
a more free flowing look with the lower part unattached to the dress. The hanfu is worn together with a separate light netting material inner piece to form a 2-layer look. This material was chosen for comfort of having to wear 2 layers in a tight fitting hanfu.
The Hanfu:
It’s a collaborative effort between myself and Karl Ho Kok Loong, winner of 2019 Cannes Global Short Films Award for Best Fashion Styling for his Gothic Oriental theme. Karl’s creative approach was to create a modern yet laced with traditional elements of embroidery and beading detailing dress to appeal to a wider audience’s fashion palette. I added on my ideas of reflecting our Malaysian-China connection via pairing 2 national flowers on the lapel and belt; peach blossoms and hibiscus (which coincidentally is Sichuan province flower as well) for the embroidery design.
The assertion of gothic orientalism is strongly reflected by creating a netted inner Chinese collared long sleeved blouse lined with green piping on the collar and bold embroidery and beading on the edges of the sleeves from the lower forearms to the hands. (Please refer to photo).
Embellishment:
The red sunbirds and dragon panels are embellished, after completion of painting, with approximately 2300 of 4mm red crystals rendering the painting a more 3D effect. The panels horizontal and vertical lines were further enhanced with golden embroidery.
Accessories:
It was further accessorized with a pair of tassels tied to the belt. In Chinese culture, tassels, especially when incorporating jade, worn by women often symbolize good fortune, prosperity, protection, and beauty, reflecting the high value placed on jade as a symbol of virtue and auspiciousness. We decided to push the tradition boundary by putting a traditional one with finer tassel on one side while on the other, a longer golden thick roped tassels which represent modernity.
The Shoes:
As the “Empress” would need a pair of shoes to match her royal hanfu, in collaboration with Lewre Bespoke and Karl Ho, the Qing Dynasty inspired shoes called “YinYang” came to fruition. We chose ruby green satin fabric to match the ochre yellow satin hanfu. I designed the golden embroidery of a stylized dragon hovering in the heaven amidst clouds on the left (representing masculinity) and the phoenix in her peach blossom flower filled garden on the right (representing femininity), following the Chinese culture placement of men on left, women on right. Then we added a strap with 1cm diameter traditional Chinese button (sewn by Karl), adjustable to fit any woman’s ankle size and can be easily worn just like when we buckle up a qipao at the collar. To top it all up the shoes were embellished with green crystals for the dragon side and yellowish white crystals for the phoenix side. This pair of shoes is indeed a breakthrough design innovation by what I call a Malaysian Fashion Dream Team! After all, shoes (and diamonds too) are a girl’s best friend!.
