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Feng Chen Wang fall winter 2023

Feng Chen Wang fall winter 2023

FENG CHEN WANG FW23

Feng Chen Wang presents the fall winter 2023 collection in Paris.

Collection Notes

The idea of connection lies at the very heart of Feng Chen Wang’s Autumn/Winter 2023 offering – not only between individuals, cultures, and communities but time periods too: the present and the past. The Chinese word ‘缝’ – pronounced ‘féng’, which means to sew, stitch, knit together – is key here. ‘鳳’, also pronounced fèng, means phoenix, symbolizes the union of yin and yang and relates to the designer’s name and her signature motif.

FENG CHEN WANG FW23
FENG CHEN WANG FW23

The Autumn/Winter 2023 collection features much of this ‘meeting’ and ‘knitting’; much coming together of disparate parts: from the male and the female to the eastern and the western, the traditional and the modern. We see Wang’s gender-liberated sensibility on clear display, as well as her union of traditional Chinese techniques and modern western styles and her seamless incorporation of tailoring and denim. Even the color palette follows this alchemical approach – for amid a cool sea of black, white, grey, indigo, and khaki comes a blaze of warm pink and fiery orange.

You and I…
Knitted together…
Hand to hand, knot by knot…” 

Feng Chen Wang

This season, Wang was thinking about the original Chinese “Hundred Families Robe” tradition, whereby, 100 days after giving birth to a child, parents will visit 100 people – from family members to friends and neighbors – and receive a piece of cloth. These fabric donations are then sewn into a patchwork robe, a shared symbol of love. Similarly, this season, Wanggathered surplus fabric from seasons past, splicing them together in a way that is not only sustainable but symbolic.

The phoenix – Wang’s signature motif – appears in a printed quilted fabric and printed denim, which melds old and new by incorporating a traditional Chinese landscape painting technique. On this denim, the motif appears as a literal ‘blueprint’ via the designer’s signature indigo dyeing technique. The motif appears throughout the collection, across clothes, accessories, and remade Nike footwear.

In addition, the London- and Shanghai-based designer partners with Estée Lauder for a limited edition make-up collection with exclusive decoration designed by Wang. The collection will be available from April 2023.

This season introduces the traditional Chinese knot – a precursor to the modern button. Wangvividly remembers her grandmother waking up every single day and fastening the knots on her blouse. Beyond the function of fastening two different parts of a garment, these knots take on the meaning of bringing two separate entities together, knotting together generations, cultures, and communities. Wang’s version of these knots appears sized up, making a statement on coats, jackets, and scarfs.

In a time when society is more fractured than ever, and we are leading ever more isolated lives, Wang’s collection extols the beauty of unity, community, and coming together.

fengchenwang.com

Collection

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