PL(ü)G Magazine Issue 1

PL(Ăź)G

#1

Young Gang Undercoverism

PL(ü)G Feature Director

Special Thanks

Emily Taylor Bacon Even Berlyn Li Zhi Liushu Lei Yutong Jiang Ren Yi Kandice L. Salomone

Graphic Designer Yilin Zhou

Fashion Editor Stella Dudley

Editor-in-Chief

Cheyenne Lee

Hanwen Liu

Feature Editor

Creative Director

Madison Paddock

Giancarlos Kunhardt

Feature Editor Shradha Rao

Executive Editor Paul Marino

Financial

Rebecca Vasconcellos

Assistant Editor Morie Dong

Copyright Editor Samantha Berlin

Contact

recruit@plugmagazine.net

Marketing Director

Faculty Advisor

Yiqing Zhou

Kandice L. Salomone

SWEET DEGENERATION #4

STUPID KIDS #34

INTO THE WOODS #18 Oh Dear, You Are So Hazardously Cheap #16

BANG GANG GANG

#8

Challenging Instagram’s Beauty Empire

#28

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THE CITY: STAGE OF IMAGERY

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Sweet Degeneration

SHUSHU/TONG

Interview Hanwen Liu; Ren Yi Text Madison Paddock Edited Cheyenne Lee Photo courtsey of SHUSHU/TONG Installation & Photo recreation Hanwen Liu; Tingjun Long

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SHUSHU/TONG is not your average womenswear label. Founded by the dynamic duo Liushu Lei and Yutong Jiang in 2015, the high-end fashion label is noted for it’s fun, feminine looks that emphasize individual uniqueness. SHUSHU/ TONG is for “girls who have a passion for fashion with personal aesthetics,” the designers said. The designers strive to create clothes that provide a girly twist for the modern woman. If you are intrested in aesthetics that are reminiscent to your girlhood, look no further than SHUSHU/TONG. Since their graduation from the London College of Fashion, Lei and Jiang have pushed boundaries and gained attention with each collection, earning them a place in Dover Street Market, alongside prominent labels like Opening Ceremony, 10 Corso Como and H.lorenzo to name a few. PL(ü)G Magazine caught up with the masterminds behind SHUSHU/TONG to discover what inspired their latest collection, what’s in store for the future, and how the likes of SHUSHU/TONG came about.

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Where did the name Shushu/Tong come from?

what will make us stand out in the American fashion market. we embrace women, and aren’t against them.

It’s a combination of our nicknames: Shushu and Tongtong.

SHUSHU/TONG sounded best.

What’s your daily inspiration?

We inspired by all sorts of things around us, movies, and even children’s TV shows. Elderly women and grandmas in Shanghai are very inspiring, because of their great sense of style.

How did your educational experience shape your design aesthetics?

Studying in London College of Fashion helped us shape our brand’s character. We were always encouraged to embrace our own identities and to freely design our ideas. At the same time, we also learned how to do systematic design [ through traditional schooling means] to get ready to become independent designers.

How have your design aesthetics changed from season to season?

We have a continuous design aesthetic focused on girls. We are interested in all kinds of girls, women’s culture, subculture, movies and cartoons. Anything where women are represented we draw inspiration from.

Can you talk briefly about your latest collection?

As a design team, how do you communicate with each other, and keep the dynamic between you two going?

We have been friends for years, so we know each other really well. We divide the work in equal parts so its easier to run the company. As far as designing, once we set our new season’s theme, we sketch individually then bring them together.

Can you give us a little insight on what we should expect in the future from shushu/ tong?

Our upcoming collection will be very floral inspired. We are going for a fairy-flowery look, so stay tuned. (end)

Our theme was the “Adult baby,” Every girl had a child-like dream of some kind. We believe that older girls and women still have the same dreams, as they did when they were babies and young girls, so we wanted to showcase that.

What was your inspiration for this season?

We were actually inspired by Miley Cyrus. She dressed herself as a big baby in her 2015 music video BB Talk. Like her, there are lots of girls that still want to go back to simpler times. So we took inspiration from baby dolls’ costumes and combined that idea with mature fabrics to create this collection.

What are the new techniques, fabric, or proportions you introduced to this collection?

For the first time, our collection is almost completely hand stitched. Over 80% of the looks are finish by hand, which is quite a challenge for mass production. All of us got involved in the final hand stitching.

What are the key pieces or looks in this season?

Our most common design quality—or something we do often, are pin-strips, bows and ruffles. For this collection, we combined bows and ruffles with more thick, heavy, and like we had mentoned, mature fabrics, to create a special kind of “conflict” that makes this collection really different.

How has the American fashion markert influenced your brand’s image’?

Season by season, we want to keep our image as close to our theme of “girly with an attitude” as much as possible. At the same time, we also try our very best to make every piece look unique but finished with the same design quality in mind. That is

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Images on this page were shot by our editor-in-chief by placing the lookbook photos, from SHUSHU/TONG’s “Adult Baby” collection, at various urban locations.

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BANG GANG GANG it’s time to get the fashion rebellion started

Photography Giancarlos Kunhardt Styling Stella Dudley; Giancarlos Kunhardt Makeup Stella Dudley Model Stella Dudley

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Blazer Ralph Lauren; Skirt Oscar de la Renta; Elevator boots; Hand made pearl cap

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Blazer Oscar de la Renta; Coat Ralph Lauren; Scarf Vintage; Elevator Boots

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Blazer Vintage; Pants Chicago Bulls; Jacket Vintage; Bondage

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On this page: Fur hat Vintage; Blazer Oscar de la Renta; Opera cape Vintage On right page: Blazer Ralph Lauren; Skirt Oscar de la Renta; Elevater boots Vintage; Hand made pearl cap; Shea feather head piece Mary Lynn O’

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Oh Dear, You Are So Hazardously Cheap the real cost of the cheap clothes

Writer Shradha Rao Editor Cheyenne Lee Photo Hanwen Liu

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As you pick up that coat from Zara, do you pause to think about the coat’s journey to the store or the actual cost behind manufacturing that coat?

Gone are the days when we had an actual relationship with a pair of jeans or a shirt we owned, wore it for days on end and refused to part with them. Merchandise we cherished and valued, merchandise we created memories in.

But, living in these times, infested with unbridled capitalism, we’re all victims struck by the lightening of ‘fast fashion.’ A phenomenon in the fashion world where retailers rush the production processes to get trends from catwalk to high streets as quickly and cheaply as possible. The same phenomenon that compels you to buy a $10 sweater at H&M you don’t really need, whose bursting seams you will notice as soon as you reach home and push it to the back of your wardrobe, never to wear it again.

Unlike the traditional brands which focus on two collections a year, fast fashion brands like Zara, Forever 21 and H&M focus on churning out collections almost every week with a 52 seasons cycle. Today, we shop in bulk for cheap for goods that are low quality, disposable and are perhaps manufactured only to exacerbate the landfill problem.

Even with dirt-cheap prices, these brands have amassed large amounts of wealth, so much so that Amancio Ortega, founder of Zara is now the second-richest person in the world. By outsourcing production to third world countries like Bangladesh, India and Myanmar and flouting numerous labor laws, these giants are able to keep the production costs at the bare minimum with the orders being assigned to the lowest bidder. But, there is an outrageously high environmental and social cost behind these lowly priced goods. It wasn’t very long ago when the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh that killed over 1,100 people and injured thousands raised alarm in the fashion world.

80% of Bangladesh’s economy is constituted by readymade garment industry and even after these accidents, which could have been avoided; Bangladesh continues to pay the price of fast fashion.

The clothing industry, with its ruthless practices has become the second largest polluter in the world, after the oil industry. Consumers often fail to understand the gravity of the situation and the enormity of fashion’s environmental footprint. It would be easy to continue playing the blame game where we point fingers at governments and industries yet we are the most important cogs in this monstrous machinery. We are swarming in pools of clothes that we do not need; we are buying almost four times the amount of clothes our parents bought. The companies flout labor laws and severely underpay the workers because, as consumers, we would rather buy cheap junk than a well-constructed piece of clothing.

For a systemic change in the trade practices, there needs to be a behavioral change where we cease to

passively consume the micro trends that swamp the markets.

We need to respect all the elements that make up the supply chain and make sure that the woman in India who sews our shoes makes more than just a dime on $150 shoes.

In the recent years the discourse surrounding sustainable style has gained considerable traction where we now see conscientious buyers, designers and manufacturers.

Zady, co-founded by Soraya Darabi and Maxine Bédat and touted as the ‘Whole Foods of Fashion’ is a consumer goods e-commerce that are setting new standards by providing sustainable and high-quality goods.

Emma Watson has been a strong proponent of ethical fashion and towards that end she has been endorsing Zady’s clothing at various public events.

Further, apps like ‘Good On You’ provides users with ethical ratings on brands in Australia according to the shopper’s budget and style. Based in Australia, nonprofit, Ethical Consumers Australia, created this free app to equip the shoppers with the tools they need to search the environmental, labor and animal treatment standards of their favorite brands so they can make more informed purchases.

There are also people like Clara Vuletich, a designer, researcher, educator and consultant who has been actively working in the sustainable fashion space. At University of the Arts London, with her team she designed The TEN, a pioneering sustainable design methodology used by brands including H&M; VF. Corp. and Gucci Group. Lately, she has been helping Australian fashion companies with insight on sustainable product innovation and strategy.

With quick google searches on a brand’s commitment to ethical practices, we can all make mindful fashion choices. As conscious consumers, we can pressurize fashion brands to change their practices. By buying better, you are voting for change through your dollar bills.

The term ‘retail therapy’ is thrown around to justify our material indulgences which do not seem to make us any happier. Instead of vacuously hoarding clothes, we could all invest in selected pieces crafted ethically that hold value or all become thrift shoppers. Another useful skill to learn is sewing so you can mend your torn dress next time instead of buying another one.

Next time, you toss that T-shirt in the shopping bag as you wait in line at the cash counter, remember that it would take 200 years for it to biodegrade. (end)

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Into the Woods dazzling in nature to shine in reality

Coats Maison Margiela; Comme des Garcons

Photography Giancarlos Kunhardt Styling Hanwen Liu; Giancarlos Kunhardt Assistant Editor Morie Dong Model Emily Taylor Bacon

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Coat & Dress Comme des Garçons

Coat & Shoes Stella McCartney Pants stylist’s own

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Coat #1 Stella McCartney #2 Comme des Garçons Dress Nasty Gal Shoes model’s own

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Coat Stella McCartney Coat Comme des Garcons Dress Nasty Gal Shoes model’s own

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Coat Martin Margiela Paris

Knit Maison Margiela Paris 26

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Challenging Instagram’s Beauty Empire why social media is the mirror on the wall

Writer Cheyenne Lee Editor Cheyenne Lee Photo Hanwen Liu

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Instagram has become the home for beauty and fashion especially in the past two years, since beauty bloggers overran the platform in 2014. “Instagram baddies,” as they have been called by the online beauty world, have effectively taken over.

“Instagram Baddies,” is a play off the colloquial term “bad b*tch,” a debatably offensive expression, to describe a woman as beautiful or sexy. Internet Jessabelles more accurately put— not only solicit makeup products, clothing, and other sponsored material, sex-appeal is a major factor that keeps the beauty industry thriving online. Well into 2016, Instagram-born companies have emerged as a result of the influx of beauty influencers, including aspiring models, product ambassadors and more. The influx of self-proclaimed beauty experts, although a useful beauty outlet for some, may be part of a major insecurity problem, in which social media has only helped worsen. And can help correct.

In 2015, Dove surveyed 1,027 women between the ages of 18 and 64 to discover what shapes our ideas of beauty.

The results showed that women are twice as likely to say that their conception of beauty is molded by “women in the public domain,” diminishing themselves, and uplifting women like the Kardashians for an example. A 2016 study by phycologist from The University of Minnesota produced a similar study, except experts found that women are using social media not only to pine over women they see online, but to also build their self-esteem through likes and picture comments. These findings put side-by-side seem a little disjointed but in reality, both findings speak to the complexity of the problem.

Women are essentially using social media to bring themselves up, only to tear themselves down in an effort to feel and look their best.

Besides this, the problem is simple. Majority of women don’t look like the genetically modified versions of the Kardashians, or famous beauty gurus, many of which have admitted to going under the knife. Still over 100 million followers world-wide subscribe to these very same accounts— making beauty one of the largest genres across platforms, with an equally large number of user engagement.

A solution to this problem has been found in what The Atlantic Magazine is calling “The Confidence Gap,” which states that women are less self-assured than men, making them more critical of themselves, both physically and mentally. Although the study identifies women in the workplace as the primary focus, their findings are still telling about how women think about themselves in an everyday context.

Women are 30% less likely to assert themselves, and overall exercise self-doubt more than men. This stems from an overall culture of insecurity, that has been historically facilitated by men, but also encouraged by women alike, well into present day.

In the digital age, this female-plighted insecurity complex has only now found its way to social media— a place where women are seemingly able to interact with content and other people free from judgement. This is clearly not the case.

Here is where the true solution comes into play; Cameron Anderson — a featured phycologist in “The Confidence Gap” study says that if women begin to think of themselves as confident and act accordingly, women would

be less bothered by outside influences. Meaning abstaining from comparisons, and practicing good-old self-love for size can do a world of good.

Easier said than done, but what is certain is that there is power in numbers, meaning that if more women take to social media to showcase different kinds of beauty, social media would have no choice but to evolve in favor of a new majority. Data shows that social media is just a complex system of call and response. Interaction and reaction, says Digitaltrends.com. Already, women have been trying this solution out with enormous success. What this also means is, woman have already begun to bridge the “Confidence Gap.” Evidences of this have exceeded beyond social media, and onto the fashion pages of major labels like Vetements, HBA, and Off White.

“Thanks in particular to Instagram, unconventional models are being cast as campaign stars…turning the notion of the untouchable fashion muse on its head,” said a think piece by i-D Magazine’s Elsa de Berker. The story entitled “How Instagram Created the Modern Muse,’ cites indie models Kate Bowman, Carlotta Kohl, and androgynous male-model Jake Levy as new faces changing the way people—particularly women—define and see beauty.

Calvin Klein’s “My Calvin’s” campaign has also followed suit in embracing adverse beauty, by not only featuring the faces of wildly famous stars, but also those of unconventional beauties like proud gap-toothed model Simone “Slick Woods” Thompson.

“She’s part of the young generation,” designer Rio Uribe said to Vogue Magazine about Thompson. “They don’t want to be categorized as anything because that brings some kind of expectation or pretense,” The Gypsy Sport designer continued, indirectly referring to how women like Thompson, are closing the ever-present confidence gap.

Chanel also defied beauty pretenses, in casting flowerchild and modern-hippie Willow Smith as the fashion mogul’s campaign ambassador.

“It’s not every day that a 15-year-old black girl with dreads gets elected to be the Chanel ambassador,” the singer turned model said to Harper’s Bazaar Magazine.

“I know a lot of girls that look like me feel that they’re not beautiful and feel like they don’t have a place in the media,” she continued. “I want to show those girls that might not think they’re beautiful [ that] they are.”

Almost as if an echo response to Smith’s Baazar interview, a beauty trend of its own inspired by black beauty is continuing to pick up relevance in the beauty community.

Melanin on Fleek as it was coined by designer and Entrepreneur Evertt X Blake, has since been reincarnated from a catchy brand slogan, into a number of melanin-related hashtags, beauty accounts, Instagram challenges and more.

With this, it is fair to say that social media is starting to diversify. It might be a slow effort, but one that is emerging into prominence because of much needed “bridge construction,” and to beauty influencers that are changing beauty standards beyond the scope of social media. (end)

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The City: Stage of Imagery Photos from “Stupid Kids“

By Li Zhi

interview with Li Zhi

“Stupid Kids“ is an independent project headed by photographer Richard Li, the artist who turned our beloved New York City into a muse of timeless beauty.

Besides his many other achievements and ongoing projects, his collaboration with T Magazine China (New York Times Style Magazine) is one of the most notable. Xander Zhou the creative director for T China, and also an acclaimed men’s wear designer himself became Li’s creative partner and associate.

After a successful bout with T China, Li moved to the city two years ago to continue his photography studies in Manhattan. Like many great artists, the city became his inspiration—a place of boundless possibilities. The urban streets of NYC inspired him most, in its density, diversity, and once again its way of integrating many different elements to create a representation of a truly gorgeous metropolis run by young people.

Text Hanwen Liu Interview Hanwen Liu; Paul Marino Edited Cheyenne Lee

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Tell me something about your childhood or adolescence? Maybe of your life before New York City?

I think every medium has it preset quality. But again, one interesting aspect of the act of creation is that it always has the possibility to refine it and make it better with other mediums.

I am from southern China, and I spent 4 years in Beijing for my Bachelor’s degree focusing on communication. One year ago, I started my MFA in NYC.

Your collaboration with Xander Zhou and T Magazine China about diversity seems like a complicated concept, can you elaborate this idea?

Why did you come to New York City in the first place? What brought you here?

I can’t remeber an exact point in time when I decided to come to New York City. It was like a magnet, pulling me towards it and it has dragged me over the years. It was sort of inevitable.

What do you want to express in your project “Stupid Kids”? What does it feel like to you, being the artist of this piece?

It is about the city as an imaginary stage. I want to convey the mixed experiences I had in my engagement with young people in New York-- a city of modern cultural history. Young kids are scattered and gathered for some reason and somehow engage with one another, under the gaze of the city. I wander around like a still photographer, but more often than not, I am just one of the audience members, and also one of the cast. I feel purely like an observer to something amazing.

In the collaboration, I tried to merge some of Xander Zhou’s images with those I collected from the Internet. The original inspiration of the fashion collection, which is supposed to be the centerpiece of the collaboration (like this one), is veiled behind the flood of the images. In this process, the Internet became both the emblem of diversity, and also the practical source of diverse materials.

Tell me more about the projects you are working on.

I am working on a video project called “Triptyque.” Some of my progress is already viewable on my website (licha.com), and there are two more to be expected. (end)

how do you capture a moment? Do you follow your stream of emotions or do you use your understanding of the city to select the moment?

The reasons to the make images vary, and how I may go about capturing an image might also vary. It can be an urge, desire, emotion, a series of rational choices and so on.

Why do you like using film?

Actually, the images I produce is a combination of different devices; DSLRs, iPhone 6, Internet images that I merge, but none of them were taken with a film camera. When I wrote my statement for VICE, I did ponder over what originally motivated me to become a photographer, and in that same thought why I never used film. A photographer by the name of Larry Clark who I admire, used film to capture youth culture in New York City, but him and his work was just the motivation for me. I still didn’t choose to use film.

Photography Li Zhi “Stupid Kids“

When you are creating (shooting, drawing), what’s on your mind?

During “the process” my mind is a chaos of ideas. Tiny logical links, textures, digital screens of information, and the urge to find the reconciliation with all this.

Which medium, photography, video, sound, do you think is the most powerful?

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Stupid Kids photography project by Li Zhi

Editor Hanwen Liu; Paul Marino Photography Li Zhi

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To browse more Li Zhi’s work, please visit website licha.co

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