February 22, 2021 |
Yuhan Wang is rerooting nature with feminine ease, one intricate lace gown at a time. “I wanted to explore how time, space and spirit connect women together, and how nature is an ever-present teacher,” the emerging designer explains. For Wang, it was an amalgamation of the illusionary language of Tang Dynasty landscape painters, the inter-relational studies of mothers and their children by American artist Mary Cassatt, and the vestiary complexity of 19th-century silhouettes that brought her AW21 collection to be.
Dubbed Women in Landscape, the collection emerges from nature’s essence, moving from joyful jacquard floral frocks and artisanal lace details to strong sartorial structures and pony hair Penny Lane coats. The gentle allure of her signature ruched and draped lace livery feeds the fantastical feeling of each look. Distressed elements and sexy obsidian gloves and tights make the collection the epicentre of fantasy for an age-defying romance. By softening core tweed suiting and recasting artisanal laces into daywear, the designer provides an intimate exploration into the language of dress.
The video released with the collection shows the playful yet seriously candid affair between the women and the graceful garments that cover their skin. Shot against an alabaster-like backdrop in a room saturated by hazy ambience, the Wang women – which included a selection of sisters, friends, mothers and daughters, diverse in race and age – wore an elegant arrangement of asymmetric floral frocks, jackets nipped in at the waist and breezy flute-hem skirts. Warm tones of bronze and burnt-amber blend with azure blue, and white to create a melange of brushy watercolour prints. Stretch satin and lace leggings were the primary adornments throughout, but tiny pearl raindrops, pine motifs and Sika deer figures are also rife from beginning to end.
Wang says, “The pine tree represents long life, courage and constancy. The Sika deer symbolizes intuition and gentleness.” Each look was complete with Louis heeled fabric shoes, giving the feminine undercurrents a life of their own. After nearly a year of Covid-19 isolation, Wang’s collection pays homage to the ineffable beauty of nature, the unwavering resilience of womankind and the capacity for imagination that pacifies us all. This is the Yuhan Wang brand in its most elegant, ethereal form; prepare for its ascent.
Photography by Francesca Allen.
