AWAYLEE HAINAN

AWAYLEE is honored to have been part of a government-led cultural initiative celebrating the richness of Chinese heritage, this time turning its gaze toward the island province of Hainan.

The designs presented drew from Hainan's natural world, most notably its coastal abundance and indigenous craft. Four designs were showcased. The first featured coconut shell fragments, each unrepeated, layered across the bodice of a top and skirt ensemble: the island rendered in material form. The second featured freshwater pearls, hand-placed in the motion of a wave across a silk skirt, evoking the quiet rhythm of water. The third featured geometric batik drawn from the Li weaving tradition, anchoring the sleeves of a skirt-and-tunic ensemble: an ancient visual language given new context. The fourth was a Hebao-inspired handbag whose base was a carved coconut shell bearing that same batik design.

For AWAYLEE, the natural world and the cultural world are never separate. It is from that belief, that nature, heritage, and craft speak the same language, that these designs were crafted.