Siqi Zhang, a Chinese-born designer that strives to explore the innovation of traditional craftsmanship. She believes her design is not only a piece of garment, but a piece of story.
Siqi Zhang
My final collection is a journey of my spiritual growth and self-healing trip. In silence walking, I imagined walking in snow, walking forward slowly and quietly. Although there was no sound, it left my mark. This kind of quiet power helps me establish a relationship with my memory.
2022 is the tenth year of leaving home and the first year of returning to myself. This collection can be regarded as a small summary of my past ten years.
“Write poetry to yourself, talk to yourself, calm down in a space, listen to your heartbeat and breathing. I believe that this life will not panic when it goes out.”
For this series, I use the slowest time to make, from fabric to stitching, without worrying about the passage of time, following the laws of nature and enjoying the time carving. Behind every piece of fabric is a tiny story that heals me. I believe handwork can slow people down and give you time to see and feel. I think People do one half, and the time do the other half, the production affected by temperature, air and time etc. can make each piece different, therefore it has temperature and power in it.
I chose wool as my material because it represented me the most. I thought wool was a soft, warm, at the same time fragile material. But when you fuse enough wool together with external force and time, it can also be stiff and strong. At the same time, wool is one of the oldest fabrics in human history, it does not need to be woven or stitched. The properties of wool fibers allow it to naturally stick together, as well as the environmental protection and vitality of wool, which itself gives a feeling of breathing.
In general, this series is something big and small that I have encountered along the way, but it is subtly changing my state of mind. I think the biggest reflection from this series is that Instead of spending a lot of energy in this impetuous and exhausting life, it is better to calm down, enjoy the present time and share it with yourself.
Now I am pursuing a slow-paced life and paying more attention to my inner world. My works are the state of my life, and my mental growth at different stages. My work and I grow together. At the same time, I also hope that those people who see my works, their hearts can also be healed.
In Silence Walking
Different ceramic pieces are like different fragments of life. There may be cracks and may need to be repaired, but these imperfections are the meaning of life. Through these imperfection, we can find what kind of life attitude and way of life suits us.
Medium:
100% wool
Then came the story of early spring, which tells the scene when the snow just melts, spring is just beginning. A little bit of greenery and flowers are starting to grow, bringing a breath of spring.
Medium:
100% wool
The Moss on the Soil After the Rain, I was in a small corner of a mountain forest, and I smelled the freshness of the soil after the rain, which made me feel very fresh and comfortable. The white mist that surrounds the mountains, and I am feeling this atmosphere in the mountains. There are a few white swans in the lake, they breathe freely on the lake. I press the pause button and stop the time in this moment, in such a beautiful mood.
Medium:
100% wool
The story came in early summer, it is the season to see the sea. In my hometown, there is a sea called blue tears. It is a rare biological phenomenon that can only be seen from April to June every year, and it only occurs for 100 seconds at a time. It is said that people who see it will be lucky, so many young people go to the beach to make wishes every year. or me, speaking to the sea of tears, those you miss, can be heard on the other side. In the end I added Chinese lacquer and gold powder to this fabric, like moonlight on the sea, like my voice was responding.