Chinese artists lend flair to foreign luxury brands

Luxury-art partnerships between well-known fashion brands and Chinese contemporary artists are becoming common.

Stepping into the Swiss Pavilion in the World Expo at Shanghai, visitors are amazed to see four giant art works from local artist Yu Hong. In a collaboration with watchmaker Swatch, Yu combines silk, polyester resin, and the shapes and colors of the watches' dials and straps, in her works.

Oil painter Yu Hong at her Shanghai studio. Provided to China Daily

Named Purity, Nature, Extreme, and Relationship, the four works reflect Yu's understanding of the Swiss.

"I have visited the country many times. In my mind, it is a country of blue skies, green trees and snowy mountains, all of which can be felt in my works," Yu says.

Meanwhile, in Beijing, Xue Song showed up at Salvatore Ferragamo's launch party at Shin Kong Place boutique store. He was here to promote a limited-edition series he designed for Ferragamo in the middle of May.

Known as Xue Song for Ferragamo, the series includes two bags, small leather wallets and a casual T-shirt. The basic pattern for these products is a Chinese painting featuring two crouching tigers, which represent power, beauty, life, spirit, and progress.

Both Yu and Xue are leading figures on China's contemporary art scene. Yu specializes in oil painting, while Xue is famous for his modern interpretation of traditional calligraphy and wash-and-ink paintings.

These are not the first cases of leading luxury brands cooperating with contemporary Chinese artists. The trend started at the end of last year, when artist and curator Ai Weiwei designed a T-shirt for Comme des Garcons. Bearing the slogan "Thanks to Ai Wei Wei", it was priced at 1,600 HK dollars ($206).

One month later, Yang Fudong, who is famous for his video works, was invited to make a mini movie for Prada man's 2010 spring/summer fashion show. Named First Spring, it was inspired by the old Chinese saying: "The whole year starts with spring", and features old, black-and-white Shanghai scenes.

Also, painter Zhang Qikai cooperated with Swiss watchmaker Titoni, after its CEO Daniel Schluep said he fell in love with Zhang's panda paintings at first sight.

Believing fashion is a kind of art, Yu said the artists' creations for fashion brands are different from their usual works.

"These works target different consumers. Pure art works are created for art collectors, but fashion aims at a larger group. Usually, cooperative ventures between fashion and art cater to the ordinary fashionistas, not art collectors. But it has a positive influence: It brings art and artists closer to the ordinary people," Yu says.

Angelica Cheung, editor-in-chief of Vogue China, says China's contemporary art scene attracts more attention than the local fashion industry on the global stage, which makes these brands keen to start these crossover projects.

"It is a good phenomenon, as these crossover works can show the Western world Chinese ideas and creations," Cheung says.

Yu believes the booming economy in China is the main reason that many global fashion leaders have their eyes on Chinese artists. "Only a fast-growing economy generates people who demand fashion and art," she says.