Modern Mulan

‘Modern Mulan’ is a collection based on the folk tale ‘The Ballard of Mulan’; a women who disguised herself as a man to join the Chinese army around 400AD to save her elderly father and family.

Looking at feminism and what it means to be a women, alongside ancient Chinese art, paintings, armour, textiles and traditional Chinese opera where cross dressing is common practice.

The collection brings in a modern twist looking at if Mulan was a woman living in modern day China, where many younger generations move to the city to support their families in rural areas, often not seeing their families for many years. This influence was shown through the bright lights of Shanghai hand-woven into armour inspired textiles, garments and silhouettes.