10 Questions with Shuqi You

Shuqi You (born in 1997 in Chongqing, China) is a New York-based fashion designer. She obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Parsons (The New School). The CFDA selected her work as a Fashion Future Graduate. In her current participatory project, Wiegenlied D498, she examined the contradictions between personal memories, namely the Chinese parent-child bond, and immediate circumstances.

You's design and art approach is based on a lengthy period of individual experimentation with materials and three-dimensional objects, with an emphasis on media characteristics, technique development, and physical existence. The intention of Shuqi's work, which is derived from creative research and field investigations, is to explore a broad range of subjects in local, memory, and critical contexts.

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ARTIST STATEMENT

In her artistic practice, Shuqi You enjoys decoding emotional sentiments and abstract notions in an academic language. She believes that human perceptions are emotive and sensitive; nonetheless, all of these emotions can be explained, more or less, by scientific facts. For her, art is not the direct, intimate expression of individual emotional experience; rather, it is a visual translation of personal life. You believe that the creation of art requires a self-consistent language, either depending on or independent of defined conventions or notions, which must be uncovered by extensive study and individual experimentation. As a fashion designer, she is always searching for the "future" of fashion, both in a sustainable and conceptual sense. She aims to contribute perspectives that go beyond the influence of previous fashion designers, providing a wholly contemporary or futuristic perspective. To work with the concept of the future, her artistic approach assiduously included developing technology and advanced mediums such as Clo 3D, Photoshop, VR Sculpting, and more. Her works are influenced by numerous disciplines, including societal stereotypes, a couple's story, mathematical equations, physical and philosophical theories. She always begins initiatives with exhaustive research. By deconstructing the words, she is able to widen her thoughts and approach the topics in an unexpected manner. However, Shuqi's ultimate goal is to discover herself through art practice.

INTERVIEW

You are a New York based fashion designer. What is your background, and what inspired you to pursue this career?

I was born and raised on the Chinese mainland. When I was in junior high school, I read The Disproportionate Body by Washida Kiyokazu. I suddenly realized the variety of clothing available. Design is not limited to creating attractive clothing. I became fascinated by the clothing design concept. This is how I started as a fashion designer. 
I've always been fascinated by clothing. I've always desired to push the limits of fashion like Margiela and Rei Kawakubo. Now I'm considering the connection between clothing and design. I'm interested in expanding my knowledge of clothing. So, what keeps me going is my continued interest in clothing. I am still exploring the necessity of design in a market so saturated with clothing.

Tell us more about your studies and work experiences. What are the experiences that shaped the designer you are now? Did you have any aha moments along the path, or did you have it all clear from the very beginning? 

I am an innovative fashion designer that is not only skilled at creating but also interested in research. Instead of saying I design clothes, it is more accurate to say I work with garments. My prior work is aesthetically pleasing and exaggerated. However, the pandemic and CLO have provided me with a fresh perspective on clothes. I began to study and utilize it frequently while working from home. While working with CLO, I suddenly understood that technology had revolutionized reality — I was able to model the entire process of clothing production using a computer. In other words, virtual technology controls our mental state. I began to consider how our visual culture has evolved from reality to virtual pictures, how we see clothing, and whether clothing has been absent in a realistic sense. Despite gaining a great deal of praise for my previous designs, I learned that my previous works as a designer stressed the vision and neglected the apparel. I've since shifted my research focus to clothing itself. Consider clothing as a culturally significant social emblem. These studies have expanded my clothes knowledge. I also distinguish clearly between fashion and clothing. Future plans include integrating pure clothing research with design.

In your work, you often deal with themes such as memory and feelings. How do you translate such immaterial themes into a design piece? 

I still find it challenging to visualize intangible concepts, such as particular emotions or experiences. Turning these disembodied things into materials would quickly become very intimate and could cause the viewer to lose empathy. Therefore, I'd like to determine if these intangible themes are associated with particular tangible materials. In my piece Wiegenlied D498 for instance, I have linked the relationship with my parents to the bamboo basket, as the bamboo basket is a symbol of the parent-child bond in my family. The fact that I have a firm grip on the connection between memory and matter, which is what gives this work its convincing quality, is the primary contributor to the accomplishment of this endeavor. 

You also mention in your statement that you conduct exhaustive research before starting a new project. What do you wish to analyze with your research? What type of information do you gather, and how do you use those in creating a new series?

To be successful as a fashion designer, I must have an in-depth understanding of the market and the ability to accurately foresee future fashion trends. Research is essential to this endeavor and is an integral part of all phases of the design process. I get inspiration from my research. I might explore all the resources I will need for my project, including fabrics of various colors, forms, textures, and lines, etc. I could also conduct a study on topics such as memories, histories, cultural components, and major events. During my research, I also visit other locations, such as museums, outdoors, and vintage shops, where I may discover inspiration.

Do you have any role model or figure you particularly look up to in your art, style, and design? 

I once admired Rei Kawakubo, Hussain Chalayan, and Margiela. They were all designers who had a significant impact on my design and thought process when I first began my career in fashion design. Recent pieces by clothes historian Ruby Hoette, whose work I personally like, have captured my attention particularly well.

In your statement you say that your ultimate goal is to discover yourself through your art practice. What do you wish to discover? And how do you think this research will impact your work? 

At different times, I wish to explore various topics. I used clothing as a form of self-expression in the past. I wanted to express my ideas and thoughts through clothing. I also attempted to broaden the boundaries of clothes, focusing on what constituted a wearable garment. Now I wish to study clothing rather than fashion. Every stage of my life seemed to be an attempt to find an answer to a question. I am able to perceive myself in the questions I ask. Recently, I collaborated with a fashion designer friend on a project. During our collaboration, we had radically diverse approaches to design. Despite the fact that it was not exactly a research project, the design concepts and procedures we utilized during our collaboration were radically different. She is a fashion-oriented designer, whereas I focus more on the structure of garments. It was because of her that I understood I wanted to study clothing rather than fashion.

Let's talk about your participatory project, Wiegenlied D498. How did you develop this idea? And what do you wish to communicate with this project? 

In many of my earlier experiments, I used bamboo strips as a medium. Weigenlied D498 is my reflection on this material. I began this project to determine why I enjoy working with bamboo strips. During my research, a photograph of an elderly man holding a baby in a bamboo basket brought back childhood memories. In my hometown, where I grew up in an ethnic minority region of China, it was traditional to transport children in bamboo baskets. So, I realized that perhaps the scent of bamboo remained in my subconscious. This project is an exploration of me. Although my inspiration came from my own childhood memories, what I observed during the construction of this project was not only a memory, but also the tie between parents and children. My early memories of bamboo morphed into thoughts about a traditional Chinese family structure. Because I hope that the definition of clothing is no longer dependent on the person, I presented this project in this manner. I hope to alter the interaction between the wearer and the worn through this concept. This shift in viewpoint, in which the clothes become the protagonist, and the wearer is no longer relevant, reveals the clothing's sustainability and storytelling.

With Wiegenlied D498, you examine the contradictions between personal memories, namely the Chinese parent-child bond, and immediate circumstances. Can you tell us more about this concept? 

I believe that the traditional parent-child relationship in China is incredibly complicated. It is profoundly impacted by Confucianism and has persevered to the present day. In traditional culture, parents controlled most aspects of their children's lives, such as the books they read, their teachers, their spouses, their jobs, and their interactions with others. Family control of one's life. Although this view has altered, it still lingers in Chinese families to some extent. In reality, my parents are quite open and accepting. When I began this project, the bamboo basket represented parental protection to me. As I was developing this concept and constructing my first piece, I saw the bamboo-created structure and recognized that it was uncomfortable for people to wear. Therefore, I conclude that this so-called parental protection is actually forced onto children by their parents.

You work with innovative technologies, such as Clo 3D or VR Sculpting. Is there anything else you would like to experiment with?

Compared to innovative technologies, I would prefer to experiment with handicrafts such as Czech puppetry, Yunnan fabric knotting, millinery, and ceramics.

And finally, what are you working on now? Do you have any new projects you would like to share with our readers?

I am currently conducting research on the absence of clothing in fashion. Specifically, I want to explore clothing as a material because it has an intriguing relationship with humans. It develops an architectural space through people and culture. As a designer, I believe that further research will enable me to comprehend the internal intricacy of the clothing system and labor issues.