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Intimate Portrait
#NoPainNoFilterJocelyn Lui
When did you become a fashionista? What inspired you to become a fashion designer? Do you have a favorite one?
I had an eye for dressing up myself as young as I was in kindergarten, matching my socks and shoes even just for popping out to buy candies at the corner shop. I think the love for fashion is inborn and probably runs in my family. When I was still in secondary school, I asked my father what he thought if study fashion in the future. He gave me his support without hesitation, saying that among the four basic human needs of “clothing, food, shelter and transport”, he considered “clothing” the priority. Guess I was destined for a career in fashion.
My favorite fashion designer is Hedi Slimane who has a background in architecture, music, fashion styling, and photography. His fashion works strike a balance in the contrast between reality and fantasy, creating an intense impact and yet also maintaining a harmonious effect. His ideas are both innovative and realistic, allowing “fashion styling” to be adopted as an everyday practice.
In particular, his runway shows are eagerly anticipated each season for their unique presentation format. He is so hands on with them – not only in designing the collection, but also with the video, photography, promotion and music selection.
What do you think would be important for fashion in terms of concept, issues to be addressed and the use of materials in the future?
I think that “upcycling” – redefining and recycling fabrics and garments to give them new leases of life – will become a fashion trend. As a concept for preserving the environment, it is different from “recycling” as the process and output of recycling is rarely organic. “Upcycling” is a more direct way of reusing materials, especially if the materials are made from natural fibers, which has the added benefit of being gentler on the skin.
What is most fun about creating in the visual arts medium?
Fashion design and visual arts brings me different sets of creative satisfaction. Both creative mediums involve understanding the nature and characteristics of various materials and substances, then utilise suitable machinery for production. However, there are a lot more constraints when it comes to design – like issues of functionality and commercial considerations – because the user is the priority. When I create visual art works using my camera, it involves research in the process and ambiguity of interpretation in the outcome, and that makes it more enjoyable for me.
Do you want to be better known for your fashion design, photography, or visual media creation?
I consider myself a fashion designer, a fashionista and a visual artist with a focus on lens-based art practices.
You have separately worked in visual media creation, fashion, and photography – any plans to explore combining them?
I’d like to try combining or mix-and-matching them, but it depends on finding a suitable subject or theme in the future!
