“Clothes shouldn’t be for a one-time display,” – Chinese designer Yiwen Jia on practical fashion

Jia presented two different projects last spring: one she had completed during the first year of her master’s and the second was part of her graduate collection. The designer was lucky enough to present her collection on a proper catwalk, though her graduation ceremony was cancelled due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The first series of her project was inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales, especially Little Ida’s Flowers. “I’m easily moved by small things,” says Jia. “I had that picture in mind, the dying flowers dancing in the moonlight in the middle of the night, so I turned this picture into clothes.” Moved by the story, Jia focused on developing a real creative concept that would accompany the storytelling. The designer spent more than two months studying various flowers before making any clothes. She took photos of the same areas of Tokyo every week, witnessing the evolution of lilies and hydrangeas throughout the seasons.

For this first part, Jia developed a total of 13 garments, all showcasing the withered flowers thanks to techniques such as burning overlapping fabrics. “I was actually worried the smoke alarm of the studio would ring,” she laughs. The result ended up being exactly what she had imagined beforehand. Jia made a lot of different design experiments; she designed unusual structures for the clothes, tried new fabrics such as aminated cloths with hot melt glue or burned fabrics, and even developed new sewing techniques comprising linings and pockets.

“The clothes must have a sense of design and practicality and have to meet the standards of real products.”

The second part of her project, the graduate collection, was much more driven by the idea of practicality. “Bunka has very high requirements for our work,” she says. “The clothes must have a sense of design and practicality and have to meet the standards of real products.” Jia was surrounded by six tutors throughout her project and had monthly deadlines to complete the different steps of her collection. She was very slow in her design process at first but working in such a fast-paced environment made her improve rapidly.

Built around the notion of visible light, the collection uses the Japanese Color Universal Design, which is friendlier to people with impaired vision. “For this collection, I paid more attention to the expression of values,” explains Jia, who found out that lots of Japanese clothing companies have a real sense of social responsibility. For example, homeware brand Muji also uses the Color Universal Design scheme.

“Rather than making shocking clothes, I want to make practical, wearable, and environmentally friendly garments.”

Her collection is made out of simple garments, intended to be worn daily. “Clothing is a commodity,” she says. “Rather than making shocking clothes, I want to make practical, wearable, and environmentally friendly garments. This is my design direction and the concept I want to share with the world through my designs.” While the first year of her master’s degree was more about the runway, the following was more about designing with a commercial purpose in mind.

“Clothing should not be for a one-time display.”

“The most important thing I learned while studying in Japan was how to convert inspiration into actual projects,” she says. She describes herself as a ‘pessimistic pragmatist’ and admits not enjoying extravagant fashion. “Every time I see exaggerated eye-catching designs, I always wonder where these clothes will go,” she explains. “Clothing should not be for a one-time display.”

Although she has now graduated, Jia wishes new students would be more aware of the non-environmental side of the fashion industry. “I hope they will make more environmentally-friendly and valuable designs,” she says. She gave her graduate collection clothes to friends of hers, who will have better use of the garments than her.

Jia has spent four months preparing the launch of her own womenswear brand, which is now postponed until the pandemic is over. She is working in Tokyo as a designer for the independent brand chi.wata while still completing personal projects such as paintings. “I learned a lot this year,” she concludes.