2046: The Collection

This is a post from a special guest. Enjoy

Hello darlings, it is I, The Boyfriend. I have hijacked this little blog to bring you a breathless report from the rarified and heady world of haute-couture.

William Chang has set the Hong Kong runways ablaze with another very strong collection this year. In his new collection, titled “2046”, he continues to work with the elegant sleeveless, form-fitting silk gowns that he debuted in his show “In The Mood For Love”. As in the previous collection, these dresses are the epitome of Sixties Hong Kong chic, yet he managed to make them exciting and fresh, never passé.

In this new collection he boldly expands his palette, employing a wide variety of rich colors (a particular standout is the green and gold striped dress with hand-sewn sequins, worn with a mink stole, modeled by Ziyi Zhang), and patterns both elegantly subtle (a black on black rose print worn by Gong Li) and dramatic (an oversized black and white tartan). But in keeping with the futuristic theme suggested by this collection’s title, he’s also added new elements to his repertoire: A series of vaguely futuristic gowns, which paradoxically suggest deconstructed Victorian frocks, featuring cutaway bodices revealing titillating décolletage. One of these, seen on Faye Wong, in a faintly shimmering mother-of-pearl crêpe-de-Chine is particularly breathtaking. And Monsieur Chang has not forgotten the men this time either. Of particular note here is a quilted selvedge jacket in a rich, yet muted, color with a strong, dynamic sculptural form.

The show itself was the typical lavish spectacle we’ve come to expect from this theatrical couturier. The models were arranged in almost cinematic vignettes (he hired the film director Wong Kar-Wai to assist him with runway direction), with moody lighting and a soundtrack of melancholy instrumentals (reprising the theme of his earlier “Mood for Love” collection) and repeated snippets of the “Casta Diva” aria from "Norman". All together, this show is bound to set the fashion world atwitter and is sure to re-spark the debate that’s been buzzing for the past several years: has Asia done the unthinkable – have they finally stolen the title of Fashion Capitol from Paris?