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What?! Models sharing the runway with lions during Guangdong Fashion Week?

Models clothed in garments with significant nods to Cantonese culture during the Guangdong Fashion Week autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

Dancing lions and models walked the catwalk, all the while accompanied by the melodious strains of the Chinese Zither, saw Cantonese cultural heritage collide headlong with contemporary fashion. The Dongguan Original Costume Design Project - an ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage’ Conference was staged at the Guangzhou Liuhua Exhibition & Trade Center on August 23 during the Guangdong Fashion Week Autumn session 2017.


Models lined up on the runway during the Guangdong Fashion Week autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

With the core theme being cultural heritage, 44 outfits were designed by 49 domestic designers and presented at the fashion week in four parts, respectively titled ‘humanity’, ‘auspiciousness’, ‘weaving’ and ‘wedding customs’. Heritage elements worked into the costumes included lanterns, dragon boats and dragon boat racing, the Kylin dance, wooden fish, among others.


A model and two dancing lions walk on the runway during the Guangdong Fashion Week autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

Two dancing lions performed on the runway as the models walked, capturing the imaginations of all those present. The lion dance performers were all locals from Dongguan, with the youngest being 8 years old.


94-year-old Hu Kui presents her handicraft works of Dongguan’s intangible cultural heritage “centenarian plate” during the Guangdong Fashion Week autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

A white-haired lady sat to the side of the runway also caught the attention of many audience members. Hu Kui, is a 94-year-old inheritor of Dongguan’s ‘centenarian plate’. Among Dongguan’s long held folk traditions is the custom that a grandma gifts a ‘centenarian plate’ to her grandchild when the child is one hundred days old. The ‘centenarian plate”’itself actually consists of a bib plate, baby sling, apron, quilt and a set of clothes, meant to wish the child longevity (hence ‘centenarian’), fortune and happiness.


Models displaying a wide range of heritage inspired garments during the Guangdong Fashion Week Autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

From now until November, the 44 outfits will be successively displayed in exhibition centers and art museums of Dongguan’s 32 towns. Following this exhibition tour, they will be permanently exhibited at the Dongguan Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center.


Close up of garments displaying traditional hand weaving at the Guangdong Fashion Week Autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

The Dongguan Original Costume Design Project has been organized by the Guangdong Association of Garment & Garment Articles Industry, the Guangdong Fashion Designers Association and Dongguan Culture Center. According to the organizers, the project aims to raise awareness of the rich cultural heritage of the region and how it is still significant in the modern world.


A model and dancing lion share the runway during the Guangdong Fashion Week Autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

Dongguan is a famous historic and cultural city in Guangdong, (having played a key role in the Opium Wars) with a still flourishing cultural heritage. As always, the city attaches great importance to the protection and transmission of the regions historic culture. There are 8 national cultural heritage projects, 39 provincial ones and 120 municipal ones, covering folklore, traditional music, traditional dance and traditional handicrafts.

Related news:

Guangdong to launch ‘intangible cultural heritage’ fashion show

A crush on Nansha Gambiered Canton Gauze

Author: Monica Liu; Editor: Simon Haywood


Models decked out in rich silks at the Guangdong Fashion Week Autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]


Lion dancers taking center stage at the Guangdong Fashion Week Autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]


Lions flank a model down the runway at the Guangdong Fashion Week Autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]


Lion Dance performers backstage. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]


Heritage inspired garments bringing a riot of colour and texture to the runway at the Guangdong Fashion Week Autumn session 2017 in Guangzhou on August 23, 2017. [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]


Here are more photos of the show.

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