Video provided = Shinhwa Communications
[신화/내외뉴스통신] Reporter Lee Song-ok
[캐서린 본 리첸베르크, 독일 패션 디자이너] “My name is Catherine von Richenberg. I am from Munich, Germany and have been living in Beijing for 22 years now. I came to China in 2000 to find a silk called Xiangyunsa (香雲紗). It is used to make beautiful clothes. It is a very special natural dyed fabric from Guangdong Province.
Being an all-natural material, this fabric is very attractive because it has characteristics that set it apart from other silks. It shows two-sided characteristics: one side shows brown and shiny black, and the other side shows metallic black color. At the same time, it is as thin as paper. This first fascinated me.
These features can make very special clothes just as you can imagine. It’s very different from what I’ve done in the past. So I’m here. The more I know where the fabric is dyed and the natural dyeing process, the more I like it.
For me, natural materials, especially silk, symbolize harmony with nature, so dyeing is also natural and requires a feeling of being close to nature in a traditional way. My studio is also on the ground in Hutong. You need to keep your feet on the ground to receive energy.
When I first started working with this material, most foreigners liked it. Since roughly 2010, more and more Chinese people really appreciate it. They appreciate the design and the philosophy behind the clothes. They genuinely understand what I’m doing. Most of my customers are repeat buyers who come every season or just buy my clothes.”
Domestic and foreign news communication, NBNNEWS
Article URL: http://www.nbnnews.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=706644