From Rei Kawakubo to Issey Miyake to Vera Wang, Asian designers have long since revolutionised fashion. These are profoundly impactful figures in fashion that are often overlooked when acknowledging industry trailblazers. Asian designers have not only transformed fashion history, but they continue to break the mould. This new wave of Asian designers is constantly pushing the boundaries of what it means to be a fashion designer. In honour of the Lunar New Year, here is Style Cartel’s list of 8 contemporary Asian designers that you need to know and need to wear.
Asian Designers Revolutionising Fashion
Susan Fang
Chinese designer Susan Fang founded her eponymous label in 2017. Before launching her label, Fang graduated from Central Saint Martins with a fashion degree. She worked for both Céline and Stella McCartney and was even a semi-finalist for the 2019 LVMH Prize. Fang’s multicultural upbringing from Canada, China, the United States, and the United Kingdom informs her brand, using beauty to connect humans globally. Fang’s technical design skills – including sculptural macramé, 3D beading, and air-pleating, to name a few – are jaw-droppingly innovative, particularly her self-invented air-weaving technique. With this technique, she layers translucent fabrics to create seemingly weightless garments. Each piece in a Susan Fang collection is expertly crafted and technologically advanced. In one word, a Susan Fang garment is art.
Shop Susan Fang here.
Yuhan Wang
Yuhan Wang is a London-based womenswear brand that launched in 2018. Wang did both her BA and MA in womenswear at Central Saint Martins and has a plethora of accolades highlighting her skills. These include first runner-up of the L’Oreal Young Talent award in 2016 and a shortlist for the 2020 LVMH prize. Her collections are inspired by Chinese interpretations of femininity, particularly how these ideas of womanhood connect to Western cultures. Wang describes her work as “beauty with weirdness, softness, delicacy and sensibility” Her AW21 collection was inspired by a traditional Chinese landscape painting. Wang creates garments that highlight a woman’s natural beauty, with expert draping and innovative proportion manipulations. Her collections are soft, delicate, and a mark of feminine strength.
Shop Yuhan Wang here.
Shushu/Tong
Shushu/Tong is a Shanghai-based brand founded by creative duo Liushu Lei and Yutong Jiang. Lei and Jiang both graduated with an MA in womenswear from the London College of Fashion and went on to establish their brand in 2015. The focus of their brand is feminine style with a twist. They wanted to design clothes for the modern woman, creating collections that blur the lines between girl and woman and that redefine femininity. Each garment by Shushu/Tong is fun and playful, with ruffles, bows and lace. The technical craftsmanship of the designers can be seen through their distinctive silhouettes and tailoring techniques that are developed in-house. This brand is for women who are unapologetically themselves and want to express themselves as such.
Shop Shushu/Tong here.
Hyein Seo
Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts alum, Hyein Seo, is a South Korean designer who was rising in the fashion world before she had even graduated. Her work is inspired by her South Korean heritage and the youth culture of today. In her collections, you’ll often see a seamless blending of traditional East Asian garments mixed with modern streetwear. The brand is an exclamation of adolescence, playful and defiant. The vision is experimental, with dramatic silhouettes and expert craftsmanship. Hyein Seo is cool, dystopian, and something that we’ve never seen before.
Shop Hyein Seo here.
Grace Ling
Born in Singapore and based in New York, Grace Ling studied fashion design at Parsons School of Design and Central Saint Martins. Before her career in fashion, Ling studied sculpture and performance art – a background that is very evident in all her collections. Essentially wearable art, Grace Ling has had several pieces exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute. The brand differs from other fashion labels due to its basis in 3D printing and CGI technology. This sustainable technology allows designers to calculate the exact measurements for materials needed, thus creating garments with zero waste. Grace Ling’s collections are contemporary, elegant, and sexy. The looks build upon simple silhouettes and are polished and timeless. The juxtaposition between the structure’s sharpness and the soft, delicate fabrics showcases the talent behind the collections – each garment is intentional, chic, and a perfect example of multifaceted fashion.
Shope Grace Ling here.
Mark Gong
Based in Shanghai and New York, Mark Gong is a Parsons alum who founded his womenswear label in 2018. His brand is inspired by the free spirit and rebellious nature of modern women. He uses the term ‘Gone Girl’ to define his target consumer, which describes women who are cultured, curious, and who have an adventurous spirit. He aims to create pieces for women who are unabashedly themselves and who never seek to please others or compromise. This messaging can be clearly seen in his collections, particularly his AW25 collection that draws inspiration from the iconic It Girls – Lindsey Lohan, Britney Spears, Paris Hilton. His work is glamorous, authentic, and cool.
Shop Mark Gong here.
Rokh
“Artisan imperfection” is the brand’s ethos. Founded by South Korean designer Rok Hwang, Rokh values human creation. In a world where technology and AI are exponentially evolving, a brand that emphasises the flawed nature of human beings is refreshing. Hwang grew up in Texas and then moved to London to study at Central Saint Martins, a multicultural background that can be seen in his work. Each piece is meticulously crafted and goes beyond current fads; timelessness is the goal. Rokh collections are avant-garde and unique. The only way to become timeless is to think into the future, which is something that Rokh does brilliantly.
Shop Rokh here.
PH5
PH5 is a knitwear brand founded by Wei Ling and designed by Zoe Champion, established in New York in 2014. The aim for PH5 is to challenge fashion’s current understandings of knitwear through whimsical designs and by showcasing the technical artistry of knitting. The name PH5 comes from the pH scale, which ranges from 0 to 14. On the pH scale, 7 is neutral. If converted to a fashion scale, where 0 is an extremely sexy brand, and 14 is ultra conservative, PH5 is a 5. It leans edgy whilst maintaining its femininity. The purpose of PH5 is to create collections that are innovative and functional, yet still stylish. The SS25 collection did just that. The garments were light, breathable, and polished. PH5 is innovating the knitwear game.
Shop PH5 here.
This new year is the year of the horse, a sign associated with strength, independence, and freedom. Ensure that you continue to channel this energy and remember to support Asian designers. Until next time! Follow us on Instagram: @StyleCartel and @StyleCartelMedia on TikTok, too, and leave a comment below!