Nostalgia, Star Wars, women in black: Shanghai Fashion Week dazzles

SHINE | 19-Oct-2021 | By Tan Weiyun

Reminiscent of the old days, imaginative with the immense universe or dancing to the city vibe, there is a lot to see at Shanghai Fashion Week runway shows this season. Urlazh: Themed “Born in the 1980s,” Urlazh’s catwalk brought people back to the old days with bold, bright colors with strong visual impact.

Classic elements during the 1980s in China, such as big shoulder-padded suits, bubble sleeves, bows and ruffles, were reinterpreted with modern tailoring techniques to reveal modern urban vitality. A reconstruction of classics, the new collection is an expression of personality and return to the past that blurs the boundary of age groups. The runway space was scented with sandalwood soap, and the models walked in Warrior-brand shoes, both collective childhood memories for Shanghai generations.

Lily

This season, Lily has joined hands with Star Wars to define the new female image, which is brave to explore in the darkness, stick to themselves in hard times and stay true with their hidden internal powers. The runway show, presented in the city’s art landmark teamLab, featured contemporary dances in the art museum’s ongoing digital exhibition, where visitors were immersed in an interactive experience with blooming flowers, darting fish and soaring crows with the aid of lighting, audio and visual technologies. Lily × Star Wars took people onboard for interstellar travels, unfolding the vast and mysterious galaxy with Lily’s latest collection, featuring colors of the universe such as purple, light green, gray and brown with galactic elements. The floral patterns added femininity to the series, outlining an urban woman in toughness and tenderness with the spirit of exploration.

Comme Moi

China’s first supermodel on global catwalks and current fashion designer Lu Yan’s brand Comme Moi brought people into a space of chic black on a breezy night with her 2021 fall/winter collection, themed “Moi et Noir” (Me in Black). She reminded us that even under the gloom of the pandemic, we still need glamorous cloth, music and romance. With clean-cut lines, the new collection exuded empowerment and relaxed sophistication for style-conscious women. The diverse line includes pleated midi skirts, wide-leg pants, fishtail gowns, trench coats and various other closet essentials. Comme Moi favors a black-and-white design aesthetic, but also incorporates sharp, abstract prints throughout the collection. Other colors such as gray, brown, dark red, deep green and bright yellow inspired by the Sahara Desert also add to the color palette of the coming fall/winter collection.