I also love their saying for 2012 “The End is The Beginning”… check out their finale parade here:

From the back he looks like a pretty normal Chinese person (actually dressed not too shabbily), and you may have noticed that he’s carrying a cigarette (also very normal for Chinese people)…

But by now you may have noticed that this guy is actually just a kid… I’m guessing around 12 years old, although the smoking may have made him age a bit. So what is he doing with a cigarette again?

If he’s trying to prove he is not a loser, he failed… I say this kid is a major loser for picking up one of China’s worst habits at such a young age. He’s got decades to smoke cigarettes… And he also has to option to not do it at all.

However, most Chinese men pick up smoking for a number of reasons (nothing to do, working long hours, peer pressure, etc.), and from a pretty young age. I was disgusted and outraged to see actual Chinese children (like 3-5 year olds) smoking cigarettes in the videos below, as there is no reason for them to ever even inhale second-hand smoke; and what’s worse is that the people filming seem to be encouraging it (they definitely aren’t discouraging it).

So China, you’re all losers whenever society makes young Chinese men (and women and kids especially!) feel compelled or pressured to start smoking. So you helped to prove today that there are losers everywhere, but you FAILED at the game of life.

Note: The videos below contain disturbing and upsetting footage.

Tudou

YouTube

So for those of you that have already broken your resolutions to go to the gym, you can still re-start and just claim you’re on a lunar cycle this year. I know gyms aren’t the funnest places in the world for most people, but for Chinese people they pretty much are.

Chinese gyms are colorful collections of “machines” and are located in various public spaces, such as this packed gym at Fuxing Park. The great thing about these gym/playground hybrids is that people of all ages can use them, but it’s usually only the young and the old.

And sorry I’m talking in the video, I was on an important phone call and was trying to say as little as possible while filming, but I had to reply a bit… But I also had to capture this moment because I rarely see “gyms” this busy in China right now primarily because it’s currently freezing outside but also because these things are everywhere, free, and usually taken for granted. But health should not be taken for granted, so there’s still time to stick to your resolution to go to the gym, even if it isn’t as fun as a Chinese one.

His load was hyperbolic-ally large, and reminded me of the Grinch:

I can’t say definitively who is more impressive… I would say he and Box Lady are both equally impressive. The Box Lady and Bag Man are both incredibly resourceful and efficient and talented so I feel bad calling the Bag Man a Grinch, but there is literally nothing in real life that you could compare the Bag Man to other than the Box Lady and the Grinch… But this guy’s heart is a good one, as he’s doing China and the world a lot of good by helping China recycle… So thanks for the (super-efficient) recycling Bag Man!

I always want to revisit the Roller Disco theme because I found another Roller Disco in Guangzhou, and lo and behold it was also decked out like the halls during Christmas:

The Chinese boys down South were as impressive as their Shanghainese counterparts, doing a chain of initially 12 people and expanded to 13 before they dispersed… You can check out a video of their impressive feat here:

Also, check out my Vimeo Page, which hosts almost every video for both CPHNS and China Fashion Collective… You can see a great video I made of Fuxing Park for Shanghai Fashion Week, as well as a sneak peak of something [non] Christmas-y which will soon make an appearance on this very countdown…..

Best Dressed Generation:
Gen X – 180 points
Gen Y – 195 points
Gen Z – 135 points + 13 points for each adolescent boy on that roller chain = 148 points

So I moved to China in October 2009, lost my iPhone in March 2010 and replaced it in September 2010 (so I didn’t really document Spring/Summer that year and migrated the blog to WordPress in November, which is what you’re reading now); ever since then I’ve been taking pictures left and right, rain and shine, day and night, on my scooter, in cabs, in buses, on the subway, and on every flight and trip I’ve made to try and bring you the most real-time, comprehensive, and ‘unbiased’ information/photographic evidence on the Chinese fashion industry and Chinese street style so you can decide for yourself:
do Chinese people have style?

I would argue that a ‘Chinese style’ is definitely emerging both in the industry and on the streets, but it can’t yet be completely defined (leading domestic designer brands like Exception de MixMind, Decoster Concept, and Uma Wang are certainly making great contributions towards defining this); there are definitely some stylish citizens in Shanghai and greater China, but they are still a minority when compared to the mindless masses. But a ‘Chinese style’ is also related to Chinese heritage, so one must consider the industry, the street, and their unique heritage to define a style or aesthetic that is genuinely unique to the country.

Anyway, enough rambling about stuff that can’t be defined just yet… Let’s get to the juicy stuff of this special post, the stats:

18,423 pictures in 1.5 years [2 years - .5 years that I didn't have my phone] or
33.65 pictures/day or 1 picture every 43.64 minutes

30578 hits in 1 year or an average 83.775 hits/day or 1 hit every 17.19 minutes

158 posts in 1 year or an average 1 post every 2.31 days

I promise in the coming year I’ll do even better… But for now, let’s all have a moment of silence to respectfully consider the picture that started it all:

And Exception de MixMind was the brand that started the entire Chinese fashion industry, and I was honored to attend their 15th anniversary… I took almost 300 pictures of their 100+ look fashion show, so I have yet to edit those and post soon. For now, I’ll leave you with this video of the opening of the show, which cuts off just when the [live] music just started getting good…

But to bring the blog back to its roots, I’m doing my second post on Chinese ethnic minorities, as I recently had a great encounter with a Miao Zu (pronounced meow zoo) at Fuxing Park, the home of Shanghai Fashion Week.

In the illustration they are wearing their traditional garb, but in real life they don’t always don such an intricate getup… But they are still beautiful, and here’s one example:

I love the graphic nature of her garb, and the colors are interesting as well… But what’s most intriguing to me is her HAIR, specifically the shape and adornments (it makes her look like the Queen of Clubs!):

But I can’t really say I have a favorite part to her look, I think she’s got the whole package. She claimed that she was just “studying” how to dance in the background, but it looks to me like she could tear up the dance [pavement?] floor, and we got to talking after I complimented her moves and her style.

She wanted to know where I was from, so naturally I made her guess (a favorite pastime of mixed babies around the world I think)… She guessed Southeast Asia if my memory serves me correctly (or maybe it was Central Asia), and her friend guessed France… But because of her friend’s heavy Shanghainese accent, she was pronouncing it “Fu Kuo” “Fa Kuo” “Fa Gou” etc., which I didn’t interpret as “Fa Guo” (France) until a few minutes into our conversation:

Sorry I haven’t had a chance to write subtitles, but I don’t think you need them to hear how funny “France” sounds when pronounced with a Shanghainese accent… But I also loved the general, slow tone of the Miao Zu lady, so here are a few subtitles so you can more easily follow the conversation (that they didn’t know I was recording, hence the bizarre angle):

Miao Zu: Ni shi Mei Guo de maaaaaa? (Are you American?)
Me: Uh, dui dui dui, jiu shi Mei Guo Ren! (Uh, yes, yes, yes, I’m American!)
Miao Zu: Ni shi Mei Guo, hen mei a! (You are American [literally beautiful country], very beautiful!)
Me: “Fu Kou” shen me yi si? (What does “Fu Kou” mean?)
Shanghainese Lady: “Fu Kuo si yi ke kuo jia” (“Fu Kuo” is a country)
Miao Zu: “Fu Kuo” shi yi ge guo jiaaaaaa” (“Fu Kuo” is a countryyyy)

Another favorite segment of the conversation (55 seconds):

Me: Ni men zou ma? You yi dian leng le… (Are you leaving? It’s a little bit cold now…)
Miao Zu: Wo chuan na me duo yiiiii fu… (I’m wearing so many clooooothes…)

Hopefully I’ll have some more encounters with some more minorities soon because they tend to be a bit more interesting to me than the Han…

It’s so appropriate that they are the Joker in this set of cards for so many reasons, so if you have a reason why it’s fitting, please leave a comment.

So anyway…

Best Dressed Generation:
Gen X – 180 points
Gen Y – 125 points + 20 points because this lady was one of the coolest Chinese people I ever met = 145 points
Gen Z – 30 points

And so how do the few Chinese people who are actually aware of this anniversary feel about it? This is what most of them feel like I think:

One of the main reasons most people are feeling so great about not having dynasties in China for 100 years is because there is more social equality in society. I’m not saying Communism is a great alternative to dynastic rule, but I think that society shouldn’t try and stratify itself (especially through sartorial practices because it eventually leads to ugly practices like conspicuous consumption and imitation)… With the Republic of China and People’s Republic of China, I think there has been less social stratification and more social integration, which is a positive thing for a fashion system (unless it leads to homogenization).

I also chose this dancing couple for this special post because they are basking in beams of sunlight in Fuxing Park, the venue for the upcoming Shanghai Fashion Week (I’ve added a new section dedicated to Shanghai Fashion Week which covers the past four seasons, look for it in the navigation bar under the banner). And if you want to see all the ways Chinese people use parks, check out this introductory video to Fuxing Park:

And to celebrate these updates and the upcoming Shanghai Fashion Week, I’m posting two videos of my favorite fashion shows from Chinese designers Vega Wang and Content. For best viewing results, go to my vimeo.

Vega Zaishi Wang Thesis Collection, Central Saint Martins

For her final thesis collection at Central Saint Martins, Vega Zaishi Wang created a glowing collection inspired by the deep sea and the creatures that inhabit it. The clothes, equipped with thin electric panels, literally lit up the runway with colors reminiscent of phosphorescence. The final piece is actually made of 8 layers of electrical panels which light up at different times and thus appears to be animated.

Content Opening Fashion Show, Shanghai Fashion Week (April 2011)

Womenswear brand Content 目录 presents their FW2011 fashion show entitled “Watching/Watched” at Shanghai Fashion Week. This young Chinese architect-turned-designer explores the concept of perspective through this show by utilizing small cameras attached to the models wrists and arms; in this way, it was not only the fashion show that was being watched, but the audience itself was filmed and projected live on the backdrop… Pretty cool.

This was one of the strongest presentations overall at Shanghai Fashion Week that I’ve seen in it’s short history (it’s been around for about 7 years). The concept, music, and execution were all there, but the clothes were also very impressive. Although perhaps not as advanced as their Western counterparts, Content will definitely give Western brands a run for their money with their innovative approach to design.

Content specializes in digital printing, and for this collection they used images mostly from public cameras in Shanghai to create prints for their looks. Thus, most of the clothing is a reflection on current sartorial culture in China, and it not only preserves but also reinterprets this unique cultural heritage for the modern, global consumer.

The fashion show starts around 2:10

The most amazing part of this video is how she’s just nonchalantly chatting on her cellphone while she hauls a giant load of boxes on her bicycle up one of Shanghai’s most crowded streets (Chang De Road)… But good for her for helping China recycle!

I’ve documented about 10 different Box Ladies around Shanghai over the past 6 months and I’m still in awe every time I see her… I hope you appreciate her as much as I do now that you can see her in action

*Open in full-screen or go to vimeo to see the original HD version for best viewing