From Inheritance to Innovation 2022 – 2023

Phase 1 - Chinese Cultural Costume Exhibition, 2022

Hong Kong Cheongsam Making Technique has been inscribed onto the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Hong Kong in 2017 and the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of China in 2021. This traditional craftsmanship is an important and critically endangered intangible cultural heritage (ICH) of Hong Kong. Strategic preservation with collective efforts of the relevant academia, associations, industry, and cultural practitioners is needed to protect the fading craft.

School of Fashion and Textiles (SFT) has been proactively contributing to safeguarding of Hong Kong Cheongsam Making Technique. A holistic program with concurrent conservation strings of inheritance and innovation has been unfolded. In league with the historical studies, documentations, archive establishments, and constructive design researches on the ICH being conducted by our academics, a two-phase contemporary Hong Kong cheongsam design project has been launched, engaging design students who are enthusiastic about this ICH of Hong Kong.

In the first phase of the project, nine students completed a cheongsam tailoring course in the summer of 2022 provided by two active practitioners, Casey Lee, an up-and-coming cheongsam tailor, and Eunice Lee, an executive committee member of the Hong Kong Cheongsam Association (HKCA). The students practiced and applied the tailoring techniques attained to design contemporary Chinese culture-inspired fashion outfits. Sponsored by Lenzing Fibres (Hong Kong) Limited, Prosperity Textiles, and Stella Blu Textile Limited, a collection of nine outfits has been created with the sustainable material TENCELTM LUXE and various eco-friendly indigo-inspired fabrics together with advanced textile technologies, including laser engraving, digital printing, machine embroidery, and digital jacquard weaving. From the perspectives of inheritance and innovation, this virtual exhibition showcases not only the creative outfits skillfully crafted with the traditional technique and advanced technologies but also the collective appreciation and enthusiasm of all the collaborators in this ICH of Hong Kong.

Phase 2 - Exhibition of Chinese Cultural Costume Design Collaboration, 2023

In succession to the first phase of the project, the curation team extended the creative process in league with Sustainable Fashion Apparel Association (SFAA) and SFT design alumni. In this innovation and synthesis phase, the students and research team of Dr Haze Ng put the knowledge and techniques acquired into practice.

Six SFT design alumni, including fashion designer Arto Wong, Derek Chan, and Zoe Li, fashion illustrator Jenny Chui, fashion stylist Constance Lee, and cultural design specialist Eunice Lee, were invited to participate in the creative process and share their professional insights with the students. Sponsored by Prosperity Textiles and Stella Blu Textile Limited, the think tank explored the possibility of novel fashion interpretations with sustainable denim and indigo-inspired textiles. Various techniques and craftsmanship were investigated, including natural dyeing, botanical printing, authentic Hong Kong Cheongsam Making Technique, 3D modelling, etc. Through the collaborative approach, a collection of eight contemporary Chinese culture-inspired fashion outfits were created.

The outcomes of this innovation phase echo with those of the inheritance phase, demonstrating the progressive learning process of the students. Not only does this virtual exhibition series showcase the collective cultural appreciation through fashion design and the creativity of SFT talents, but also the unlimited design possibility in the creative space of cultural design.

The two-phase programme concluded with a physical exhibition “From Inheritance to Innovation” in May 2023 at K11 Musea, featuring all 18 novel creations.