Faria Xu

Concept Statement

Italo Calvino's The Baron in the Trees(Il barone rampante) has stayed with me ever since I first read it - a man who spends his entire life among the branches, never once returning to the ground, not even upon death. Was it an escape, or a deeper way of drawing close? The question lodged itself in me, and slowly turned inward.

My research began through the lens of deconstruction, then moved into the idea of the "unfinished" in painting - that suspended, unresolved state that mirrors the baron's own paradox of being both within the world and apart from it.

But the deeper I went, the more personal the questions became: who am I? As a designer with a background in oil painting, I began looking for ways to translate the act of painting - its process, its layering, its sense of accumulated time - into the language of clothing.

This collection is an invitation to step inside a work still in progress. The surfaces carry traces of brushwork, moving from the stillness of black and white toward an abundance of colour; on fabrics of my own making - textured, dimensional - self-portraits rise to the surface, the weight of paint pressed against the contours of a face. Tree-like forms thread quietly throughout, drawing everything back, gently, to where this journey began.

Through painting, making, and reflection, this became a journey inward - one through which I slowly came to know myself again as a maker. Like the baron, I am still searching for my place among the trees.

Design Philosophy

As a designer, my approach is deeply shaped by my training in oil painting. I understand clothing in the same way I would approach an artwork - not as a product that needs to be quickly categorised, but as an existence that requires deep perception. Before moving into specific design decisions, I focus on the overall atmosphere, the relationships between forms, and how the work is experienced in space. This allows my process to begin with observation and holistic judgement, establishing a clear sense of direction rather than being led by isolated details.

For me, clothing is not purely functional, but an extension of inner states. I am interested in the unique relationship each person forms with a garment, and the impact this relationship carries on psychological and emotional levels. Through explorations of layering, structure, and tactility, I aim to create a quiet space between reality and imagination - where dressing becomes an inward dialogue, a momentary state of stepping outside existing frameworks and reconnecting with a sense of self.

In practice, my design often begins with an abstract concept or a feeling not yet clearly defined-perhaps an atmosphere, a spatial relationship, or an observation from a fleeting moment. Design thus becomes a continuous exploration, rather than a predetermined answer.