The Hanfu movement, a social movement that started in 2003 with the purpose of re-awakening the »Chinese traditional culture«, has re-introduced Chinese historical clothing from the times of imperial dynasties – hanfu – to the general public. One of the movement’s initial goals was to, through hanfu clothing, raise awareness of one's own culture – with the focus being on the culture of the Han ethnic group – amongst the general (Chinese) public. The movement also set off a multimillion hanfu industry, in which both extremely specialised stores with luxurious handmade products and stores with products that are more within the budget of an average consumer can be found. With the movement’s growth and an increase in demand for hanfu clothing, certain visual and practical adjustments were made in the production of hanfu, as new styles developed within the movement, including the so-called modern hanfu, which was visibly more influenced by current fashion trends. Just as the movement itself, hanfu also transformed not only shape-wise but also meaning-wise – from a symbol of subversion and cultural rebirth, into a commercial product, while at the same time also being the means by which individuals could express their own identity. One of the main goals of this dissertation thesis was to, through analysis of two online stores, find out how much influence modern fashion trends have on modern hanfu designs and to discover whether there exists an interchange between the two. As clothing is a part of every individual’s self-expression, a part of this thesis is also devoted to finding out the position of hanfu clothing in the global fashion sphere, as well as a means of filling the void in the cultural identity of the Chinese youths.
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