WANGLILING, Vogue

Taiwan designer Wang Li Ling on New York Fashion Week,
“If you spend more than one hundred thousand hours on one thing, you will become an expert!”

Taiwanese fashion designer Wang Li Ling’s Autumn/Winter 2016 collection was recently shown at New York Fashion week. Walking the runway in her recent pieces were models Chris Hernandez from America’s Next Top Model and Zhao Qian, who made an appearance in Transformers 4.

Wang Li Ling’s eponymous brand, took inspiration from water: the movement, the colour and the nature of water. By using a number of photosensitive materials and high-tech fabrics, Taiwanese manufacturers were able to develop exclusive, avant-garde black and white reflective fabrics. Additionally, details in the clothing resemble that of classic Chinese costume decoration with detailed and complicated embroidery by utilising traditional methods of beading and weaving– beauty is found through juxtaposing traditional and modern techniques.

Looking back on the process of arranging a show, Wang says it still feels unreal. She had only planned to see fashion shows and have a holiday in New York. But 8 hours before her departure, she received a call from a sponsor saying that they would love to sponsor her show. After arriving in New York, she finished model casting and communications with the show director and with the help of her friends in such a short amount of time – there wasn’t even time for rehearsal. Having graduated at Shih Chien University in fashion design and having attended Central Saint Martins to study textile futures, Wang opened the show with her reflective materials. “ I begged my light director to give me 5-second black out in the beginning of the show which made the photographers super crazy. They can’t capture anything without light – it is prohibited to use flash in the show.” Wang has been crowned The Light of Taiwan after the show report from mainstream media. Although she’s only 31-year old, Wang enjoys calling herself Lao Wang: “Lao Wang is here to take a bow, I know everyone is very supportive of me but there’s so much pressure on me, I’m afraid to face it back home!”

"I used to do everything super-exaggerated" But now, Wang Li Ling has found the perfect balance between experimental and practical and the results have been amazing. Just after completing New York Fashion Week, the organizers offered to have her collection be shown at the Los Angeles Fashion Week show and to begin thinking of future showings in Paris, Milan And London. She had no time to rest and flew straight back to Taiwan to prepare for the Los Angeles show. Wang Li Ling encourages young people who have dreams. "Keep doing what you love and if you spend more than 100,000 hours doing it, you will be a professional expert!”