Postcard Getaway

Highlights from Taipei Fashion Week 2024’s Opening Show

Written by Kaelie Piscitello

As the lights dimmed on each fashion show, Songshan Cultural Park’s Warehouse Number 5 brought together the many overlapping cultures and communities in the fashion world. Taipei Fashion Week’s weekend of events celebrated Taiwanese culture, welcomed different perspectives, and allowed local and international talents to share their ideas.

Taipei Fashion Week welcomed celebrities and locals alike and catered to people from all different backgrounds. While some of the shows showcased pure art draped on models’ bodies, other looks appealed to the general public and matched street styles seen around the streets of Taipei.

Other shows demonstrated the typical high-end fashion many associate with fashion weeks, while others sought to make political statements.

The opening show on October 18 brought together many beautiful looks and represented the epitome of what a diverse set of minds bring to the table.

#DAMUR x Wei Wei Boy Bring Life to the Stage

As the lights dimmed on my first fashion show of the weekend, I quickly realized how much variety I would experience. Six designers presented their work on the first night, and they all brought something different to the plate. 

#DAMUR x Wei Wei Boy‘s outfits stood out the most. Each model wore bright, checkered, bold, highlighter pink and yellow suits. Many models had done their hair into spikey looks, and the models gave a performance instead of a typical strut along the runway.

The performers incorporated modern dance moves into the lineup, and one man with sneakers draped around his neck ran through the runway laughing hysterically.

Ultimately, the brand’s mascot, Wei Wei Boy, hit the runway and invited the crowd’s enthusiasm by bobbing around and waving. #DAMUR’s part in the opening ceremony was one of the most memorable moments from Fashion Week and made me wish I had secured tickets to see their full collection during their Sunday show.

Story Wear Encourages Mystery and Wonder

Story Wear also had a striking set of clothes. I appreciated the use of dramatic, villainous music booming in the background as the models presented a variety of outfits representing both the heroes and “bad guys” many associate with traditional fairy tales. Each look contrasted but complemented the last by bringing a new layer to the story.

One man came out draped in a black trench coat with sparkly details looking like rain dripping down a window and an astute top hat to match.

The woman behind him followed in an all-white ensemble glowing under the lights. Her look featured a touch of grey through three feathers gathering the material at her left shoulder. Overall, the pieces invited viewers to use their imagination to figure out how each of the characters intertwined throughout a story.

Tang Tsungchien x 夏仙’s Magical Forest of Clothes

I also loved Tang Tsungchien x 夏仙’s ‘Le Temps Retrouvé line. This line invited viewers to partake in a more lighthearted fantasy than Story Wear but still stood out through its breathtaking bright colors and natural elements. Each piece evoked memories of either a magical forest or a rendezvous on the beach and evoked pure art.

My favorite dress resembled a sunny summer’s day with a round, orange sun dotting the chest, blue birds flying through the sky, and an array of colorful flowers leading eyes toward the hemline.

Another dress resembled a cirrus cloud with its long, flowy top draping past the woman’s knees and matching white pants breezing behind the model as she walked. After the show ended, all the models posed for photos in a museum recreation of the forest and allowed passersby to take their final pictures of the looks.

While Tang Tsungchien’s fashion was worth seeing, I can’t help but love the end of their show the most because the designer brought out an adorable puppy to have his moment on the runway.

Mixing Military and Formal looks with DYCTEAM x Raimochi

DYCTEAM x Raimochi’s looks utilized dark tones; many had camouflage-esque patterns featuring ghosts and color gradients. The cute ghosts and camouflage patterns mixed well, and many beautiful accented blue colors stood out against the dark colors permeating the dark clothing.

I found the comfortable look of the clothes refreshing, as they seemed like something anyone could wear. Each set of tapered pants looked particularly cozy for work or a day at home, and the blazers were the perfect way to dress them up (though you could also dress them down).

RAY CHU x michun’s Take on Popular Trends

I appreciated how RAY CHU x Michun added their logo as a creative part of the pieces. A silver spikey firework popped against the clothing and made a pretty contribution to each piece that featured it. I enjoyed looking at the black jumpsuit with silver hints on the belt and shoulder. It appeared classy but different from the typical clothes you would see someone wear.

I loved the short black skirt paired with the belt and the silky button-down top with silver buttons. It matched today’s upcoming trends of low-rise bottoms paired with crop tops. I also enjoyed viewing RAY CHU x Michun’s all-red outfits and applaud their red T-shirt and mini-skirt look.

.67 Arrow’s Take on the Wild West

.67Arrow brought creativity and revival to the timeless Wild West theme. Their portion of the opening event invited a man in a cowboy outfit to dawn the runway with a tight white tank top, a stylish black vest, and patchwork pants.

The cowboy entertained the crowd with dancing and a mysterious facial expression while the other models presented their looks. Similar to how #DAMUR’s unconventional runway performance caught my attention with its dance, the cowboy made RAY CHU’s clothing lineup memorable.

My favorite runway piece of RAY CHU’s work was a black and red suit with black tiger-like stripes adorning the red half. The outfit brought a creative take on an otherwise traditional suit through vibrant pops of bright color.

A Classy After Party

After the show commenced, everyone left the warehouse quickly. I found this a bit odd since people tended to linger and network after the shows I attended at London Fashion Week back in 2022. However, I realized they left to take in the live museum exhibits. All of the models posed in front of their designer’s part of the exhibition next door. The next day, the designers displayed them on mannequins, but I loved seeing them on live people.

The opening show brought together many different creative minds and introduced the variety I would experience at other Fashion Week shows.

Each designer had a mix of modern clothes the average person might wear and artistry. I appreciated the consumer-friendly take because many people associate fashion shows with outfits no one would wear outside of the MET Gala. The opening show set the weekend ablaze with inspiration and made me impatient to see the rest of the shows.