Finding his Wei

AARON Yong Wei Hao is a living example of persistence paying off. Even though he had no idea or intention to be a fashion designer, being trained artistically for over a decade has paved a way for him to perform well in this field.
The Kota Kinabalu native is part of the first batch of ESMOD Kuala Lumpur’s fashion design graduates, having won a scholarship back in 2012 from an art competition organised by the Parisian fashion school.
But even with a solid background in illustration, fashion school threw him onto a steep learning curve. With no seniors to look up to, Yong and his course mates grappled with all the new-found knowledge through mere experimentation.
“It was hell!” he exclaimed with a laugh.
“When you draw something, it’s flat. You use pens, paint and brushes. But when it comes to fashion, it’s more than just drawing – you’re sculpting, converting something 2D to 3D. It was completely new and foreign to me, but knowing how challenging it was cultivated my love for fashion in the process,” the 22-year-old divulged.
IN RARE FORM
For an emerging designer’s debut, Yong’s collection for spring/summer 2017 is well thought out – transcending seasons in the same vein he is wise beyond his years.
Dubbed as Bleached Heritage, the collection’s neutral colour palette, choice of materials, and play of silhouettes form an eulogy for a particular aftermath of climate change: coral bleaching. To summarise, corals are bleached when warm water temperatures expel the algae living in their tissues, resulting them to turn white and unfortunately, more susceptible to stress and mortality.
In a nod to sustainability, Yong amassed old denim – one of the most environmentally hazardous fabrics to produce – and gave them new life by shredding then knitting them into a few pieces in the collection. The shredding was done to lessen the weight and adapt to our climate.
Although it is not financially viable for WeiHaoYong to practise sustainability to its fullest extent just yet, Yong is committed to continue spotlighting important issues through his collections.
“To be honest, fashion is a field that’s completely not environmentally friendly. So, it is the least I can do to make a difference. As a designer, I think it is not just our part to make pretty things. We should use this opportunity to portray visuals that inform,” he expressed.
No less important is his emphasis for comfort and practicality, and in keeping with the marine theme, Yong replaced heavy neoprene – a synthetic rubber used to make wetsuits – with bonded jersey (i.e. foam in between top and bottom layers of cotton) to achieve the same structure and volume of the former without weighing down and warming up the wearer.
In fact, he intended for all 25 pieces from Bleached Heritage to be easily mixed and matched, and transitioned into various looks. Regardless the season, Yong also deliberately offers heavy and lightweight options for the same design within a collection – simply because you can still wear autumn/winter pieces in spring-summer, or vice versa.
“I base most of my garments on pieces that would stand through the test of time. I want you to keep wearing it. Plus, whenever you wear a nice cocktail dress or something fancy, people would remember that and you can’t wear it again.
“I’m trying to make things that you’ll still look nice in in the future, which you can also refresh with another outfit,” he explained.