Taipei Fashion Week opened its Autumn/Winter 2023 season on March 22nd with “CrossLab: Dialogue between Traditional Performance, Craftsmanship and Fashion,” a themed group show highlighting the collaboration between 7 fashion designers and 7 traditional craftsmen and performing artists.
The opening show represents the DNA of what Taipei Fashion Week stands for—where fashion is more than just part of an economic system, and allows us to connect with our culture and history.
The show was held in front of Nankunshen Daitian Temple in Tainan, one of the oldest and most historically important temples in Taiwan. With 360 years of history, Nankunshen Daitian Temple represents not only local Taiwanese life, but also the most essential fashion elements in each crucial historical moment. The core of contemporary Taiwan fashion is derived from traditional craft culture, making Nankunshen Daitian Temple the perfect backdrop to display collections that pay homage to the preservation of tradition in modern day.
Familiar fashion designers took part in this year’s show, resulting in a unique and brilliant look into the future of fashion. C JEAN collaborated with lacquer artist Ching-Shuang Wang; GIOIA PAN with Taiwanese opera master Mei-Yun Tang; JUST IN XX with traditional temple painter Wu-Nan Zhuang; BOB JIAN with Zhen Shou Temple Wu Jing Tang Folk Parade Club; TANGTSUNGCHIEN with Tung-Hua shadow puppet theater; YENLINE with paper sculptor I-Chang Chen; and WEI TZU-YUAN with Hsia-Sheng Chen, who specializes in traditional and creative knotting.
The show is the third in a trilogy of crossover collaboration at Taipei Fashion Week between contemporary fashion designers and traditional craftsmen, following the crossover of contemporary visual art in SS22 and the crossover of indigenous crafts of master craftsmen in SS23. As with the previous crossover shows, this year’s opening show seamlessly blends art, craftsmanship, culture, and fashion to show new and exciting propositions for modern Taiwanese designs.
Taipei Fashion Week continues to move forward steadily with an emphasis on Taiwan cultural pride as part of its plan to create an interdisciplinary fashion culture. The goal is to create a legacy where art and culture fuse in contemporary popular clothing, combining fashion with fields such as film, drama, popular music, performing arts, and traditional crafts. Ultimately, Taipei Fashion Week aims to become an influential force of promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion on an international stage and become synonymous with a respect for craftsmanship, cultivating talent, and driving endless creativity.
Following the opening show, Taipei Fashion Week will continue through April 8th. For the latest updates and scheduling information about this season’s runway collections, head to tpefw.com.
