China's Fashion Elite

GUESS WHAT!?!!

I finally received my iPhone 4, so now I have lots of new and beautiful pictures of Chinese People WITH style that I'd love to share with you all.

So when I found that Shanghai ranked #12 in a list of Global Fashion Capitals, I very nearly poo'ed my pants... But I shouldn't be so surprised at this, especially when considering the below information (just pictures, really) about China's next generation:



I had so much more hope for China's aesthetic future after spotting this adorable little girl, and I think that after the next generation comes of age, Shanghai will rival cities like Tokyo and Seoul as Asia's top fashion capital.

OH YA, and then I spotted her sister, who was even more elegant silhouette at just about 5 years and 2 ft+ (take a real close look at her dress):



I can't wait for Shanghai's young fashion elite to roam the soon-to-be more-aesthetically-pleasing streets and influence China's fashion system as an informed consumer.

So here they are everyone... representations of China's FUTURE aesthetics!:

Shanghai Ranked 12th in "Global Fashion Capitals"

Really??

This ranking by the Language Monitor was enough for me to come back to the blogosphere from a nearly 4-month hiatus.

How many kinds of stupid do you have to be to rate LA higher than Tokyo on a list of "global fashion capitals" (and especially with such a large discrepancy)?

I guess you would have to be about as dumb as this algorithm:

"This exclusive ranking is based upon GLM’s Predictive Quantities Index, a proprietary algorithm that tracks words and phrases in print and electronic media, on the Internet and throughout the blogosphere."
-Language Monitor Website

I mean, ya, it kind of makes sense as an algorithm, but I don't think sartorial code can be that simple or one-dimensional.

If you lived in Shanghai and had seen all the times that the words "fashion", "style" or "vogue" are used completely out-of-context, then you would understand my point... The following are just sartorial examples, but there are "fashion" restaurants, cafes, nightclubs, that permeate ever visual component of Shanghai:




Just because the media on the Internet of one city may use certain key phrases like "fashion" or "style" more than another city doesn't mean that the actual practice and existence of fashion/style is necessarily "better" (meaning, of the former).

Perhaps instead of reading more of my incoherent ramblings (my English is suffering severely from living on the Mainland), you should just take a quick gander at the list below and decide for yourself what does or doesn't make sense:

1. New York (+1) – Reclaims the top spot which it sees as its rightful place.
2. Hong Kong (+5) – The highest ranking ever for an Asian city.
3. London (+2) – The first time, the No. 2 ranking goes to anyone other than the Classic Four (New York, Paris, London and Milan).
4. Paris (-1) – No. 1 in our hearts by No. 4 in the eyes of the media.
5. Los Angeles (+1) – Film is playing an ever more important place in the world of fashion.
6. Milano (-5) – Milan Fashion Week was widely considered a disappointment.
7. Sydney (+2) – Sydney and Melbourne are both energizing the fashion world from Oz.
8. Miami (+5) – strength in swimwear propels Miami into the Top Ten.
9. Barcelona (+5) – Once again, take the top spot in Iberia.
10. Madrid (+11) – Impressive leap into the Top Ten.
11. Melbourne (+14) – Sydney strides ahead; Melbourne even moreso.
12. Shanghai (+2) — Hong Kong and Shanghai both outpace Tokyo.
13. Sao Paulo (-5) – No. 1 in Latin America, again.
14. Tokyo (-2) – Maintaining a relatively strong message while slipping a bit.
15. Singapore (+5) – Strong fashion infrastructure helps it keep pace.
16. Las Vegas (-6) – Hard economic times make a dent in Vegas’ standing.
17. Amsterdam (NL) – Move on to the list for the first time.
18. Berlin (+1) – Hard work helps it main spot in the Top Twenty.
19. Rio de Janeiro (-1) – Strong Latin presence yet slips further behind Sao Paulo.
20. Moscow (+2) – Back in the Top Twenty where it belongs.
21. Dubai (-10) – Transformation of Burg Dubai into Burj Khalifa mirrors the local fashion industry’s trajectory for the year.
22. Rome (-18) – Steepest decline for the survey, ever.

But maybe I'm giving Shanghai and the Language Monitor a rough time... I mean, there are certainly glimmers of style throughout this fantastic city, but the seasonal trend of rolling your shirt up over your beer belly to beat the summer heat has made me overall really skeptical of Shanghai's style potential. But here are a few springtime outfits I managed to snap while I still had an iPhone that make me still believe:

The Chinese Riviera

So I didn't know that China had a tropical island until circa 3 days ago, but I got invited to show at the Hainan Rendezvous and couldn't refuse the opportunity. I guess it was something of a "Billionaire's Fair", where they sold private jets (Airbus, Boeing, Cessna, AirJet, etc. were all there), yachts, and other particular indulgences (art, cigars, champagne, etc.) However, I was more interested in the local culture (meaning fashion culture) more than the billionaire's fashion culture, although both proved to be interesting.

However, I am remiss to let you all know that my iPhone was stolen or lost in Sanya, which was where ALL my photos were of the weekend... The clothes were STUNNING on this island and at this event, some positively so and others not so much. It was interesting to see how the ideas and archetypes associated with islands/island culture/billionaires was interpreted by the locals and visitors alike, and I will certainly have to go back there when I get a new phone to give you a glimpse at some pretty phenomenal stuff and wild styles.

Anyway, I'm off to Tibet around April 16th to go and scout out "The Hope School" for child art talents that can help me create new fabrics to provide customized, artistic products to China's consumers (the proceeds go back into supporting the school and art education, and may also help support The Ailing Foundation). The collaboration will be announced in a more formal forum soon, but I can give you a quick preview of materials that will be launched as a part of the same collaboration.

Only one artist has already been confirmed for this project, but it is photographer-extraordinaire Maleonn. Check out his website for an idea of what is to come of this collaboration, but here is a special sneak peek at two fabrics by Maleonn:



The printed fabrics (starting in silk and cotton in limited quantities) will be used by Chinese designers like Jiang Ling, Nio, Angela Chen, and Angela Gao to create customized and exclusive products, and many of these designers will be showing at Shanghai Fashion Week (April 8-13)... I'll definitely review SFW as the shows pass, and I have higher expectations for this season, as there is better infrastructure being set up to truly help Chinese designers enter onto the world stage.

Sniped Shanghai Street Shots: Top 9 of '09

I've had three obstacles thus far in putting together a Top 9 of '09 list like this (I kind of did it):

1 - I've only been in China for 12 weeks and thus don't have that many great pictures to choose from.
2 - I've literally been sniping shots (stealing you could say perhaps) of people on the streets because no one will ever pose when I ask them... they are highly suspicious of us foreign folk, which has made it difficult to get perfectly posed pictures.
3 - I'm usually trying to take pictures as inconspicuously as possible while walking on the street, riding the bus, in a cab, or on my roommate's scooter. So please, if the pictures are off-centered or blurry, don't judge me... the pictures are ranked by considering both the subject's style/stance and the quality of the photo.

...So I've finally edited it down to the Top 9, but this post might spoil some later posts because the pictures are released before they are really contextualized. But it's the New Year soon, so there are many, many new pictures to be sniped of otherwise unwilling subjects, but just to forewarn, you will see some of these pictures again.

Honorable Mention - She would have made it into the Top 9, but I spotted a Burberry scarf in her outfit unfortunately. But I know that it's at least real because it's not conspicuously the central piece of her look. Rather, it's blended as a part of a beautiful composition, and I have to give her props for making the world's single most offensive piece of clothing almost bearable:

Number 9 - This guy really isn't Number 9... I just thought I should start off the list with a strong and interesting look to entice you to read further, and this guy has style to the max. His layers are great, the colors are beautiful, and the composition is perfectly and quirkily accented by the silly shape and color of the hat:



Number 8 - Jean jackets are back! Or rather, they never cycled out of the Chinese fashion system. We are still a couple of decades behind here, so I could understand one or two jean jackets here or there. But there are MANY, and they are EVERYWHERE (as I'll blog about later). What's worse is that jean jackets are inevitably paired with, how creative!, jeans. But he looks like a working boy, as he's obviously a bit tired, so his jean suit is probably uber functional:


Number 7 - Here's a construction worker with a loosely tailored and semi-disheveled look that I thought was super cool. If you were working as a construction worker, wouldn't you want to still achieve some amount of individuality from the billions and billions of other construction workers in China?? I've never seen an anyone in such a profession in China so interestingly dressed, but the proportions, colors, cuts, and styling are all there. Appropriate, but still exceptional:

Number 6 - I love the conspicuousness of this woman's PJ set... I never knew a pink to pop like that, and what makes this particular ensemble even more special are the heeled boots and cell phone she's sporting around with her stroller:

Number 5 - So poised, yet not posed... this young gentleman has interesting layers and proportions, as well as nicely composed colors.

Number 4 - I always find people on the street wearing super interesting uniforms... an interesting factoid when you consider the country's recent sartorial history. Anyway, this maiden clad in all white gets the Number 4 spot for her cute haircut and incredulous stare:

Number 3 - This little girl is ColorBlocking my brains out! She deserves Number 3 all to herself for how cool she looks (and the pose I got was great!), but I'm adding another little girl's picture right below just for some contrast... I bet the ColorBlocker didn't dress herself that way, but at least someone in her family had the decency to not dress the little girl in a fake Burberry coat at the tender age of 5:


Number 2 - This old guy has the most endearing smile, and I somehow managed to capture it... and this close up to him too! The iPhone has revolutionized picture/video-taking, because I would never have been able to have gotten this close to someone and sniped this kind of a shot with a regular camera. Anyway, I love his sweater pattern and color combination on top, and he's dressed appropriately for his age. His personality though definitely is what makes the picture Number 2:

Number 1 - She's the coolest f'in lady I've seen in China. I ran across the street and almost died to get this photo, but it was well worth it. She's super unique and quirky by Chinese standards definitely, but she's just chillin' and doing her own thing with that bright blue bow tie. I think she was as intrigued by me as I was by her, which allowed me to snipe this great shot and expression:

Homogenizing Forms 1: Burberry Burberry Everywhere!

I'm ignoring the winter solstice and declaring that today, it is officially winter in Shanghai (it's a brisk high of 59, and low of 52 today).

My fellow Shanghai-ers seem to agree that winter has arrived, as people all around have broken out their winter gear. Unfortunately for me and anyone else who has a general appreciation for aesthetics, the most popular winter product in Shanghai is anything with Burberry's trademark plaid unabashedly slapped on favorite basics. Behold here: the Burberry scarf, the bane of my existence and China's most homogenizing form:

There were many many pictures of Burberry scarves I COULD have posted, but the above picture was less offensive than a full-frontal shot.

But in case if you're looking for a full-frontal shot for proof of this terrible trend, here you go:

It is pretty obvious that I took all of these shots without people knowing/noticing (creepy, I know, but no one would ever let me stop them on the street, make them pose, and sketchily take a picture of him/her on my iPhone... that's just awkward), but I think this guy noticed. Regardless of if he did or didn't, the above is one of my finest shots to date. Enjoy this scandalous display of an obviously fake Burberry scarf.

And unfortunately, the products on which the Burberry plaid is printed in China just keep getting bigger. This girl's skirt would actually be kind of cute if it wasn't so ugly and offensive:

And last but definitely not least is this GINORMOUS coat... I don't even know what to say about this:

Barf