SHENZHEN fashion brand HUI made a striking statement at Milan Fashion Week with the global debut of its Spring/Summer 2027 collection, THE FAN CODE, offering a contemporary reinterpretation of Eastern cultural identity and female empowerment.

Founded by designer Zhao Huizhou, HUI used the traditional Chinese round fan as a starting point to explore heritage, craftsmanship, and modern aesthetics. Rather than replicating historical artifacts, the collection treats culture as an evolving, living dialogue.

Inspired by the artisanal traditions of Miao women in southwestern Guizhou Province — who preserve community memory through intricate weaving, embroidery, dyeing, and tailoring — THE FAN CODE bridges traditional technique with modern design. The collection highlights Eastern women not as static symbols of the past, but as active creators defining their relationship with tradition in a changing world.

On the runway, printed silks, sheer fabrics, and structured textiles were layered to create balance between softness and form, transparency and coverage. Traditional motifs were deconstructed and reassembled into contemporary silhouettes, offering a fresh approach to heritage fashion.

Enhancing the runway narrative, Italian multidisciplinary artist Maria Jole Serreli collaborated with HUI to design a custom set featuring red thread installations. The ongoing creative partnership, which began in 2018, extended the collection’s themes of time, womanhood, and memory into physical space.

HUI’s latest showcase reflects its ongoing commitment to bringing Chinese heritage craft onto the international fashion stage, presenting Eastern aesthetics not as a fixed relic, but as an ever-growing, global language.(Yang Mei)