Chinese design brightens From Beijing Winter Olympics to Met Gala global Fashion stage

CHEN Peng, a rising Chinese fashion designer behind the performance outfits at the opening ceremony of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, has again proven his creativity at the 2023 Met Gala.

Cardi B’s gown plus Chinese label

This year’s Met Gala held on May 1 encouraged guests to dress

Chinesestory

A destination to treasure: how he came a “rural guardian”?

ONE of the videos featured on Long Yan’s account on the short-video platform Douyin is a tour through the stunning natural landscape and folk customs of Guizhou province.

The video blogger, who is in his 30s, has produced more than 170 such videos, unveiling the unique charm of destinations in the southwest of China, such as the elastic azalea blossoms in various shades of red in the ethnic Yi quarter of Bijie city, the otherworldly karst rock forms of Zhijin Cave and the residents of Anshun city, who still wear the ancient, wide-sleeved blue robes of their ancestors.

“These are what I want to capture for the public”

Long, who was born and bred in the province, is known as Le Tian, or heavenly happiness, in the cyber-world, and is rapidly garnering attention on the platform, both for himself and his native home.

Many of his 1.2 million followers have left comments saying they have developed a longing for what Guizhou has to offer through Long’s travelogues. “It is exciting that good content can draw public attention on its own,” Long says.

In his view, Guizhou’s stunning natural and cultural landscape featuring mountains, lakes and rivers, diverse ethnic customs and deep, profound history deserve to be better-known by online audiences. “These are what I want to capture for the public,” he says.”

“Traditional craftsmanship should not be forgotten” ute to Lagerfeld’s style. Yet despite collaborating with a renowned celebrity, he also maintained distinct features from his own label. surpassed the U.S. in the fashion and apparel market at the end of 2020. China’s fashion market is growing at a rate of 25 percent per year. The data shows that Chinese consumers will account for 40 percent of the world’s luxury spending by 2025. ing the latest trends, but creating their own unique fashion statements too.

Over the past three years, Long’s video content has undergone noticeable changes. He initially focused on natural scenery but has increasingly paid more attention to deeper exploration of humanity and cultural heritage.

“The design consists of over 600 camellia petals and took more than 300 atelier hours to complete.

“The era of mechanically blending traditional Chinese elements like the color red and Chinese knotting featuring 3D and a sculptural gown, featuring 3D camellia flowers and a sleeveless top with a black tie, was worn by American singer Cardi B on the red carpet, to honor the theme of the gathering.

“It’s a pleasure, but also a challenge for me and my team,” said designer Chen Peng. “It requires extraordinary creativity, execution, and communications to complete such a mission,” he added.

From hair dress to shoes, Chen Peng created the whole look in trib- top

Me and my team worked in our Shanghai workshop around the clock to get the most satisfying results. It’s not only testimony to the craft of design, but also shows my studio’s capabilities to handle an international celebrity’s tailor-made gown project,” Chen said.

“All in all, the effort was fully reflected in the dress. The moment I heard people along the red carpet were wowed about this Chinese label, everything was worth it,” Chen added.

China, a creative superpower

According to McKinsey, China

ers have made waves in the interna tional fashion landscape. From top fashion weeks to high-end galas, the designs are speaking for themselves and showing China is no longer just a strong clothing manu facturer. The country is becoming a creative superpower in the design world.

more Chinese designs, like Robert Wun’s silk stain gown.

that dress designed by hime with red splotches meant to look like spilled red wine.

Chinese Hong Kong designer to enter the Paris Haute Couture Week schedule.

not only in creasingly embrac -

Olympic skiing champion Eileen Gu chose Wun’s Wine Stain Gown as her Met Gala comeback look. (CFP)

A sleepless night for art lovers: Shanghai Museum holds a 24-hour carnival showcasing masterpieces

SHANGHAI Museum opened its doors to the public for 24 hours, an unprecedented practice, on the last day of the exhibition From Botticelli to Van Gogh: Masterpieces from the National Gallery, London on May 7, giving art and culture lovers in the city the chance to browse and admire its various exhibitions at any time of day or night.

The exhibition, jointly held by the Shanghai Museum and the National Gallery of the UK, displays 52 paintings from 50 well-known European art masters such as Raphael, Titian, Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Constable, Monet, and Van Gogh.

A series of activities, including one that saw actors dressed in costumes similar to those worn by characters in the paintings walking around the venue, took place from 10 in the morning till midnight.

Since opening on Jan 17, the exhibition had received more than

420,000 visitors, the most among all paid exhibitions held in museums in the Chinese mainland.

Pictures and video clips about the exhibition were widely shared on Chinese social media and viewed by more than 400 million times.Sales of exhibition merchandise also hit a record high, with about 24 million yuan ($3.47 million) worth of products sold.

According to Chu Xiaobo, director of Shanghai Museum, the exhibition was so popular that the museum extended its opening hours into the night for 50 days during the 98-day exhibition. CHINA

Since December, Long has dug into his own pocket and launched his own project, which aims to document 100 examples of intangible cultural heritage across the country in three years. Long felt the urgency to accelerate his project when he learned that a senior performer of Dixi Opera in Anshun — which features wooden masks and functions to show respect to gods and help dispel evil — passed away last year.

“I could still remember how he was full of energy when he put on the mask, and there seemed to be a glint in his eyes when he shared more about his craft with me,” Long recalls of the time when he met the old man during his filming of a travel video in 2020. “Traditional craftsmanship should not be forgotten, and the dedication and perseverance of inheritors of intangible cultural heritage is worth remembering,” he says.

Positive results seen from his work

For his efforts to guide his followers to discover the charm of Guizhou, Long was named a rural vitalization tourism ambassador by local authorities in 2020. His first intangible cultural heritage video was about the leaf-vein embroidery technique practiced in Tongren city, Guizhou.

Yang Li, an inheritor of the craft, which features vivid needlework patterns on thin leaves, expresses her appreciation for Long’s effort in promoting her craft.

“Many people have visited us after watching his video,” says Yang, “they wanted to see, learn and experience the craft, as well as purchase related products, such as pendants and keychains.” Long has been recognized by Douyin as a “rural guardian” contributing to village development. Text and Photos: CHINA DAILY