Meet Keith Chan, Redress Design Award 2019 Hong Kong Best Prize winner

Keith Chan’s Redress Design Award 2019 collection is inspired by Hong Kong’s signature neon signs. “Bright, colourful neon lights and visual symbols are everywhere in Hong Kong,” he says. “They symbolise the spirit and power of Hong Kong, its progress and its fortune, with unique aesthetics revealing its lifestyle and culture. Nowadays, for many reasons, neon light boards are being replaced. My collection celebrates their beauty while giving new life to old clothes and textiles.” Keith applies up-cycling and reconstruction to colourful end-of-roll textiles, which are combined with fabric scraps and secondhand garments to create layered, asymmetric garments. Typography, using eco-friendly inks and embroidery, is applied over a background of deep blue, to recall Hong Kong’s iconic night skies. “The styles are timeless and sophisticated; most people could wear them on most occasions, and the materials are easily obtained,” he adds. Keith holds a BA in Fashion and Textile (Knitwear Design & Technology) from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University but it is his experience as a research assistant that directly informs his philosophy and his techniques. “I’ve been working on new technologies in textile applications and have come to realise that the process produces lots of textile waste. At the same time, commercialisation accelerates the consumption of textile products,” he says. “As designers, we have a responsibility - and an obligation - to develop sustainable alternatives, repurposing surplus products with innovation and to create positive and balanced design processes.” His dream is to create a brand and also to become a consultant, advising others in developing sustainable design methods and materials. “We need to change the mindset that sustainability is just a trend. Instead, it is here to stay.”

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