River to Ocean

All Gender Fashion Collection for Yiyao Nie & Qiongxin Kou

River to Ocean, seeing who you are while flowing your way. It combines Kou’s textile work with Nie's 3D wearable sculptures that resemble splashing liquid frozen in time. This capsule collection contains 6 looks in total, and it was divided into 3 themes which are “Meet with flowers”, “Meet with air”, and “Meet with earth”, which are also three metaphorical elements as one’s diverse experience in life to help him/her to see the true self.

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River to Ocean by Yiyao Nie

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All Gender Fashion Collection by Yiyao Nie

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Yiyao Nie River to Ocean

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Yiyao Nie All Gender Fashion Collection

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Yiyao Nie amp Qiongxin KouBrand Logo

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River to Ocean All Gender Fashion Collection Press Releases

Availability alert: Press releases for River to Ocean in languages including English.

River to Ocean All Gender Fashion Collection Media Articles

For immediate use: River to Ocean articles, available in languages such as Hindi, Spanish, English, Turkish, Arabic (Standard), Indonesian, Portuguese, Korean, Japanese, Russian, Chinese (Mandarin), Italian, German, French and Dutch, to enrich your content.

Unique Properties

This capsule collection contains 6 looks in total, and it was divided into 3 themes which are “Meet with flowers”, “Meet with air”, and “Meet with earth”, which are also three metaphorical elements as one’s diverse experience in life to help him/her to see the true self. Each theme is made up of one female look and one male look in the same pattern but different color palettes.

Tags

Haute couture and technology, textile design, 3d new media art, sustainable design, human well-being, social mental care, 3D printed Design, Sculptures

Production Technology

We created our own fabrics for flower and air themes, and always keep in mind to develop collections in different sustainable ways. In this one, Kou explored a way to zero waste the fabrics by a new fabric manipulation method. Traditionally, zero waste has been more adopted on garments’ constructions, but since Kou is always interested in textile design, she turned her attention on fabrics themselves at this time and created a new form of fabric which could not only re-use leftover fabric pieces but also presented them into an abundant mix-textured quality piece. The constructions in this collection are romantically dynamic. Layerings, pleats, and a hint of ruffles gave each look a fluid movement, and while the fabrics were flowing, people could see small flower details swaying with them together which were hand made and attached on different spots on the garment. In addition to the textile and couture techniques, some pieces in this collection were created with 3D technique by Nie. The hats in flower theme and the vest in theme air are 3D modeled in superstructural constructions to mimic different forms in moments of how water drops on flowers or collide with rocks. They were printed with white resin in this collection and will be printed in clear color materials with different sizes furtherly. The hats in flower theme and the vest in theme air are created and designed in 3D software first, then 3d printed into small parts using resin materials, and finally painted and assembled by hand as a wearable sculpture.

Design Challenge

The biggest challenge here is to transform the new media art form of sculpture into a wearable comfortable fashion hat and vest. 3D artist Yiyao Nie firstly created and designed the look of hat and vest in 3d software, and then discussed and adjusted with fashion designer Qiongxin Kou to make it closer to a comfortable piece ready to wear. The vest is designed and broken down into small pieces, easy to freely assemble to different forms, giving the vest a more dynamic look.

Project Duration

“River To Ocean”is made for and showcased in London Fashion Week 2020 F/W. It started from December 2019, and ends up February 2020. The whole making process had been done in New York and California.

Operation Flow

This collection is in a fresh color palette and various soft fabric types. The 3D printing pieces are in big silhouettes but fairly light weight. When you wear the garments, you’ll not only have a comfortable touch on fabrics but also will be amazed by the hand made textile details around your body. With putting on the 3D printing piece, you can flexibly move but need to pay attention to things around you due to its volume structure.

Research

This collection is a collaboration between fashion/textile designer Qiongxin Kou and 3d artist/creative technologist Yiyao Nie. We both are very interested in the theme of nature and humans inside nature. Starting the research by getting inspiration from nature itself, we travel and feel it. The pure and raw emotion from our heart about our own life in the world is the key string in this collection. This cross-field collaboration between fashion and new media art gives us more creative ideas and the ability to remember and freeze our feeling or emotion about life in time, like the journey of “River To Ocean”, seeing who you are while flowing your way. In fact, to accept self or see who we really are is the most challenging thing in life, as been told by Kou's father who has been working in psychology for over 20 years, many people use their whole lives to compromise with themselves, to heal the pain they got from childhood hard memories or frustrating time that had destroyed their confidences. To know, to see and to accept oneself could create beautiful moments in life, this principle will release so much pain and build so much courage and brightness, and this goal forms the essential thought for this collection.

Inspiration

“River To Ocean”, seeing who you are while flowing your way. This concept is a metaphor to illustrate the moment in a life that one who finally finds a true self throughout his/her past experiences. As a Chinese proverb has been said, “The small me meets the big me” which means that we will bravely face up to and accept true selves throughout what we’ve experienced.

Image Credits

Qiongxin Kou Yiyao Nie

Project Overview

River to Ocean All Gender Fashion Collection has been a Silver winner in the Fashion, Apparel and Garment Design award category in the year 2020 organized by the prestigious A' Design Award & Competition. The Silver A' Design Award celebrates top-tier designs that embody excellence and innovation. This award acknowledges creations that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional, reflecting the designer's deep understanding and skill. Silver A' Design Award recipients are recognized for their contribution to raising industry standards and advancing the practice of design. Their work often incorporates original innovations and elicits a strong emotional response, making a notable impact on the improvement of everyday life.

Silver Recognition

Yiyao Nie was recognized with the coveted Silver A' Design Award in 2021, a testament to excellence of their work River to Ocean All Gender Fashion Collection.

Yiyao Nie Press Releases

Media members, dive into our press releases on Yiyao Nie's work, ready for you to use and enhance your journalistic content. Now available: Immediate access to 2 press releases for journalists.

River to Ocean: A Unique All Gender Fashion Collection by Yiyao Nie

Introducing "River to Ocean", a captivating all-gender fashion collection by Yiyao Nie, showcased at London Fashion Week 2020 F/W. This collection, a collaboration between fashion/textile designer Qiongxin Kou and 3D artist/creative technologist Yiyao Nie, is a metaphorical journey of self-discovery inspired by nature and human emotions.

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