As the fashion spotlight slowly moves toward the azure waters of Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong, we take this opportune time to highlight five names in fashion who are fanning the waves of influence with new, exciting works.
Caroline Hu
Arguably one of the most promising names to look out for not just within Hong Kong but already at Paris Fashion Week is Caroline Hu. The first-ever winner of the BOF China Prize, shortlisted name in LVMH Young Designer Awards, and an alum of prestigious institutions like Central Saint Martins in London and Parsons School of Design in New York, her soft, flou-ful and romantic couture creations of Reverie by Caroline Hú are what Sandy Liang fans can expect to see if her brand every delves deeper into craftsmanship-first design. The undeniable youthfulness of her pieces plays the game of volume with tact, and has even got one of her gowns inducted as part of the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Derek Chan
Derek Chan, founder and creative director of DEMO, manifests the drama of the written form with fashion design. An avid reader who also loves to explore the concept of masculinity through a contemporary and gender-neutral lens, his works often play into classical tailoring styled different. Designs feature rich textures, including tweed, distressed denim, striped shirting, and traditional fabrics reinterpreted through handmade embellishments and embroidery.
Nigi Wang
Nigi Wang is a Hong Kong fashion designer who specialises in custom-made celebrity costumes, particularly in designs made for the stage. His own designer brand, “GINIGIWANG,” founded in 2015, is a reflection of his passion for fashion futurism, technological philosophy, and cultural heritage. Within his design practice, Wang draws on the old-world dark elegance of Western Europe and its Gothic-inspired collections.
Brun Chan
Chan Brun is founder of royksopp gakkai 蘑菇學會 — “royksopp” stands for a kind of mushroom in Norsk, while “gakkai” means school club in Japanese. A designer who also dabbles in the fields of art direction, Brun believes fashion is just one of the mediums to express aesthetics. Therefore the brand design concept often tells stories through our designs rather than just selling garments, employing the use of an eclectic range of fabrics that range from different styles of patchwork vintage handkerchiefs, crochet fabric, blankets, to printed mesh fabric and knitwear. She also styled and worked as an art director to produce collaterals for wide range of artists that include Eason Chan, Balming Tiger, Suzy Bae, Mirror’s Lokman and the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra.
Jasmine Leung and Davis Tong
“The Chaos”, founded by Jasmine Leung and Davis Tong, is a brand that merges art, film, photography, culture, and philosophy to redefine eco-fashion. Built on Jasmine’s 2023 Redress collection, the duo challenges stereotypes around sustainability, combining upcycling and reconstruction with traditional craftsmanship and innovative tech to create fluid, gender-blurring silhouettes. They also champion the use of natural and regenerated fibres to promote a more sustainable future.
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