The official schedule for the 2022 edition of Shanghai Fashion Week is set to run from 8-16 October 2021.
The opening night of the week’s event displayed a power-house act that kept the audience wanting more.
Picture this. You are seated in the centre of a dark and gloomy room. All you can hear are the silent whispers of fashion lovers and designer strangers installed alongside you.
Suddenly your ears are filled with the sound of a solid and bold whispered word – “Masha”. Thunderclaps and grumbling sounds echo around the room, and you find yourself drawn toward a purple light that illuminates the stage.
Like the rolling northern lights, purple streaks bounce up and down, following a figure that proudly strides across the floor. It’s the models. The canvases step out to inspire and perform and are not there to be anything less than professional.
This marks the official opening. The show has begun.
Up pops the white canvas lights to reveal the runway stars striding down the catwalk in Masha Ma’s uniquely lit extravaganza.
The opening show — a first for the independent designer, was presented by the local fashion designer, Masha Ma. She gave her work alongside tip-toeing sounds and intense background ambient vibrations.
Models flocked to the rounded runway wearing softly tailored suits and shiny dresses – by using deconstructed draping, she reveals the duality that women in Chinese society face today.
With a flick of a switch, she shines a light on her latest designs, featuring women’s roles in the modern era.
She says she hopes her designs can help boost confidence in women in modern times. From this, we can safely say that this season, female empowerment is a central theme.
Based between Shanghai and Paris, the emerging designer usually presents her collections during Paris Fashion Week.
However, this year marks the first time she’s debuting a collection in China. And it’s sparked enthusiasm in some attendees for upcoming shows.
“Successful Chinese women are very sharp and strong, but they are also very soft and motherly. So it’s this contrast — almost like soft armour. You wear it to be strong, but then you are protected.” – Masha Ma
Masha Ma is a symbol of China’s new globalized generation. Who says you can’t be a businesswoman AND have fun?
The combination of suits, ties and dresses questions all things multi-layered and exposes and celebrates the power that women can have on any society – no matter how conservative they may be.
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