The Spring/Summer '24 collection is inspired by Feng Chen Wang’s childhood
memories of her grandmother; of accompanying her on walks through the
mountains and alongside the meandering rivers in her hometown in Fujian,
China. Precious memories, as if imprinted deeply, have left Feng with deep
senses of love and nostalgia till this day. Wang wanted to celebrate these
memories by recreating them using an ancient botanical contact printing
method. Working with local Chinese artisans, Wang selected some of her
grandmother’s favourite plants like onions, gallnuts, eucalyptus and apple
leaves and pounded them onto traditional Chinese silk. The colors, form
and veins of each botanical clearly imprinted onto the fabric. Each plant
is like a memory of life, each expressing an exuberance and tenacity for
life; each one remembering the passing on of tradition. From there, new
unique Feng Chen Wang patterns emerge this season.
"Some memories are very profound but somewhat vague, perhaps even mixed
with some of my imagination, but my creative process shows a sense of
colour change with a strong emotions", Wang says. Therefore, featured in
this collection, are pieces with color gradation of pink, blue, purple,
black. Dream-like colours are spread out, dyed, rising and evolving, yet
captured into an imprint on the fabric; just like memories which are
deeply embedded. Silk is the principal fabric used by Wang this season; a
symbol of natural purity, it appears on shirts and shorts, and on
transparent organza jackets. Pure cotton, a brand signature, is used in
denim pieces and T-shirts. Wool suits featuring the botanical contact
printing method lends an elevated finishing touch to the collection. A
process of pure handwork between Wang and local artisans, the patterns
require several rounds of dyeing to achieve the desire colour result. With
the addition of more tailoring, different elements of Chinese and Western
style come together in a decidedly contemporary fusion.
Wang explains how the collection reflects the fluid state of flow in her
creations. In her grandmother’s eyes, dragons and phoenixes were always
symbols of romantic love, with the phoenix being a signature Feng Chen
Wang motif. A new dragon pattern appears in this collection through
jacquard and water-washing processes in different colours, including
denim-blue, grey and shades of khaki. The dragon and phoenix are purely
mythical, divine beasts in the imagination of ancient Chinese people;
embodying their fervent hopes and wishes. 2024 is the Year of the Dragon
in China, and perhaps this collection can be used to envision a better
year ahead.
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