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Kiko Mizuhara wearing one of LO's designs at the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo International Film Festival 2019

Ryan LO (Chinese: 罗子皓, born September 20, 1989) is a Chinese British fashion designer, whose work explores romantic fantasy and the notion of girlishness.

Early life and education

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Born and raised in Hong Kong, Ryan LO relocated to London to pursue a BA at the London College of Fashion. Before launching his eponymous label, he gained working experience with French designer Charles Anastase, who won the ANDAM prize.[1]

Design career

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LO made his debut at London Fashion Week in 2012, presenting his first collection under Lulu Kennedy’s 'Fashion East' initiative,[2] which supports emerging designers. In 2014, the British Fashion Council awarded him the 'NEWGEN sponsorship',[3] a grant that he retained for six consecutive seasons.[4]

In 2015, LO had his first solo runway show at the Tate Britain.[5] His label was nominated for the 'LVMH Young Fashion Designer Prize', alongside designers such as Craig Green, Virgil Abloh’s OFF White, Simon Porte Jacquemus and Demna Gvasalia's Vetement.[6]

As an established London Fashion Week participant, LO has collaborated with creatives such as Isamaya Ffrench,[7] Sam McKnight MBE[8] and Stephen Jones.[9] In 2016, he staged a fashion show at the Southbank Centre featuring a then-unknown English actor, Emma Corrin, as part of Southbank's summer program.[10]

In 2019, LO’s portrait was featured in Martin Parr’s exhibition, Only Human: Photographs by Martin Parr, at the National Portrait Gallery in London. His work has been recognized and featured in prominent design publications such as Vogue Japan, Vogue China, British Vogue, i-D, V Magazine, Another Magazine, Dazed and Confused, Self Service and LOVE.[11]

Style and influences

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Asian nostalgia

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LO has credited his upbringing in Hong Kong as a major influence on his collections, drawing inspiration from the city's blend of Eastern and Western cultures.[12][13] He has explored the interplay between high fashion and pop culture,[14] with past collaborations spanning a range of brands, including: sketch, Launer,[15] Silver Cross and Sanrio.

He is known for celebrating Chinese and Asian culture and fusions of millennial nostalgia with contemporary fashion sensibilities.[16]

In his Chinatown themed collection, SHOWstudio's Lou Stoppard said, "His show is him, and he is his show... LO has license and mandate to ponder these themes. If another designer had done a ‘China show’ and quoted Mulan, it would have felt crass and even offensive. This didn’t - it felt like a celebration of the way China is perceived, remembered, or depicted. That interest in fantasy and perception runs through LO’s work."[17]

In a further example of his fusion of cultures, LO presented a Sanrio Hello Kitty collaboration collection at London Fashion Week. This collection reimagined Harajuku street culture into high-end fashion, merging it with his signature evening wear. Maya Singer of Vogue Runway said of it: "Well, what do reviewers know?... and Lord, wouldn’t it be refreshing to see one of Lo’s Hello Kitty print gowns on the red carpet at The Oscars next week?"[18]

Modern romance

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LO's core aesthetic is described as being characterized by femininity, prettiness, and a playful allure, underscored by a recurring escapist romance, and his collections evoke a Lolita fairytale quality,[19][20] as described by SHOWstudio: "Ruffles, organza and the most beautiful embroidery reminded one of cotilion; these were girls coming of age, coming out and searching for a suitor. Nymph-like models glided as if weightless in water-color pastel dresses with romantic florals and puff shoulders..."[21]

Luke Leitch of Vogue Runway noted the surreal and otherworldly nature of LO's designs: "Ryan LO’s clothes are unreal: They seem barely fit for the world. That's less a criticism of this designer's cutely rendered, sweetness-saturated vision of womanhood—romantic heroines bolstered by barrel curls and power lips—than it is of the mundane plane on which most of us live. Not LO, though",[22] and: "These dreamy, cloth-crafted alter egos should cry out to expressive fantasists who revel in looking (and feeling) something else."[23]

LO's work has provoked discussions about modern gender politics.[citation needed] His references to traditional symbols, such as Royal Weddings and Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City, have promoted debate about their relevance today.[citation needed]. Vogue's Leitch said: "To go as unreconstructed Romantic tradition as Ryan LO did in this collection takes some chutzpah. That seemed destined for some post-show explain-it-away point about out-of-time gender politics."[24]

Designs in public

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As an independent designer, LO dressed Ellen Fanning for the 2019 Cannes Film Festival,[25] Helena Bonham Carter for the worldwide premiere of The Crown (season 3) on Netflix[26] and Lily James in a wedding dress for Comic Relief's Red Nose Day, aired on BBC One.[27]

His designs have also been embraced by a roster of Hollywood actresses and musicians including Kiko Mizuhara, Masie Williams, Lucy Boyton, Lorde, Rina Sawayama, Lily Allen and Lady Gaga.[28]

References List

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  1. ^ "About". Ryan LO. Retrieved 2024-08-14.
  2. ^ Furniss, Jo Ann (2012-09-15). "Fashion East Spring 2013 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  3. ^ "British Fashion Council". www.britishfashioncouncil.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  4. ^ "British Fashion Council". www.britishfashioncouncil.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-08-18.
  5. ^ Brandes, Bertie (24 February 2015). "Show Report: Ryan Lo A/W 15 Womenswear | SHOWstudio". SHOWstudio. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  6. ^ Johnson, Noah (2015-02-21). "Exclusive: LVMH Prize Semifinalists on Their Plans for the Future". Vogue. Retrieved 2022-09-04.
  7. ^ Singer, Olivia (2015-02-26). "Isamaya Ffrench on Ryan Lo's Manga Kate Middletons". AnOther. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  8. ^ Valenti, Lauren (2019-02-15). "The Pearl Hair Barrettes at Ryan Lo's Romantic London Show Are Surprisingly DIY". Vogue. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  9. ^ Ahmed, Osman (2016-09-17). "Fashion Week Photo Diary: Ryan Lo and Ashley Williams". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  10. ^ Allwood, Emma Hope (2016-07-25). "Ryan Lo on his sugar-sweet retrospective show". DAZED. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  11. ^ "Press". Ryan LO. Retrieved 2024-08-18.
  12. ^ Shu, Agnes. "Made In Hong Kong: Ryan Lo On What Makes A Hong Kong Girl". Tatler Asia. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  13. ^ "Declan Chan: In Conversation With Ryan Lo". Vogue Hong Kong. 2019-02-02. Retrieved 2024-08-18.
  14. ^ Edmonds, Lizzie (17 February 2017). "Hong Kong designer Ryan LO to collaboate with Hello Kitty for London Fashion Week show". The Standard.
  15. ^ Leitch, Luke (2017-09-15). "Ryan LO Spring 2018 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  16. ^ FASHIONSNAP (2017-02-22). "雑誌フルーツ月刊終了の余波がロンドンのランウェイに". FASHIONSNAP [ファッションスナップ] (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  17. ^ Stoppard, Lou. "Show Report: Ryan Lo A/W 16 Womenswear | SHOWstudio". www.showstudio.com. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  18. ^ Singer, Maya (2017-02-18). "Ryan Lo Fall 2017 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  19. ^ Hall, Harriet (14 February 2020). "London Fashion Week day one roundup: Ashley Williams, Ryan LO and more". The Independent.
  20. ^ Young, Sarah (16 September 2016). "London Fashion Week: Ryan LO, Shrimps and Ashley Williams". The Independent.
  21. ^ Evans, Georgina (15 September 2018). "Show Report: Ryan Lo S/S 19 Womenswear | SHOWstudio". www.showstudio.com. Retrieved 2024-08-18.
  22. ^ Leitch, Luke (2019-02-15). "Ryan LO Fall 2019 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  23. ^ Leitch, Luke (2018-02-19). "Ryan LO Fall 2018 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  24. ^ Leitch, Luke (2018-09-14). "Ryan Lo Spring 2019 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  25. ^ Pike, Naomi (2019-05-17). "The Week's Best Dressed". British Vogue. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  26. ^ Pike, Naomi (2019-11-15). "The Best-Dressed Celebrities Of The Week". British Vogue. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  27. ^ de Klerk, Amy (2019-03-26). "You can buy the wedding dress Lily James wore for the Comic Relief special". Harper's BAZAAR. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  28. ^ "Celebrities". Ryan LO. Retrieved 2024-08-18.
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