Interview with Bowie Wong

For Paris Fashion Week, we caught up with Bowie Wong after his Haute Couture show at the Peninsula Hotel.

KODD magazine: Where does your inspiration come from?

Bowie Wong: You’re welcome (laughs), my inspiration? I don’t know where it comes from; at first something strikes me, maybe it’s knowledge, education, I’m not trying to be political or anything like that you know? But how do you translate knowledge into fashion? School uniforms? I don’t really want to do just school uniforms, so I’ve injected a bit of Japanese culture, a bit of American culture, and that’s it.

KM: You mentioned freedom. Is that an important concept for you? Do you need to feel free when you’re creating?

BW: Oh yes absolutely, the thing is, I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, I don’t do anything fun (laughs), and so my energy actually comes from … from sleep! When I sleep, I dream a lot, I remember it; I dream during the day too, on public transport when I don’t have to drive, yeah it’s just daydreaming, I can dream right now.

KM: I like your sneakers, are they Kris Van Assche?

BW: Yes, how did you know?

KM: Because I want them (laughs)

BW: (laughs)

KM: What do you think of the fashion industry today?

BW: Fashion today is going in a very interesting direction, a lot of the big houses are becoming mass-market brands, you know? I don’t see myself spending so much money to make sure everyone has the same thing, what can I say? It’s like a boss and his secretary, you wouldn’t want your secretary to dress like you would you? So the well-known brands are now targeting a mass audience, and at the same time there are people like us, we don’t have a massive production, a huge company, and we’re struggling, but at the moment the market is quite funny.

And I think a lot of people are into fast fashion, they buy something cheap, they wear it once or twice and bye bye, it becomes too fast, it’s like going to a fast food place like Kfc. It’s a bit like sending an e-mail or writing a letter by hand, I prefer handwritten letters, sewing is a bit like handwritten letters, you know? It’s more personal, it conveys more emotion.

KM: You were born in Hong Kong and live in Australia, so you’re multicultural, do you think that influences you?

Born in Hong Kong I live in Australia, but I don’t know actually, because when you’re inside a box, you don’t know what’s going on outside. I don’t know, but in fact I have energy, and that comes from Australia. It’s such a peaceful place, so cool and free and sunny. But at the same time I’ve found a certain culture in Europe and Asia, and it’s true that putting it all together helps enormously.