SSU-YU YEH

In the past, temples were often the grandest and most ornate buildings in a community. Now, in Taiwanese cities, they are being squeezed, fragmented, flattened, or hidden away in dark alleys. At first glance, temples seem to have become like stubborn holdouts in urban development.

Elements taken from the city include imitation: fabric pieces are first cut, then pulled apart (loosening threads), sewn, and painted to create layered linear textures.
 Elements drawn from temples include the use of cut-and-paste mosaics and Chaozhou-style ceramics, replicated through triangular folding and sewing techniques to mimic textures — coincidentally similar to the structure of paper lotus flowers. These resemble the upward-curving lines often seen on temple eaves typical of Minnan and Cantonese temples.

Images of “Bright Light Lanterns” and cut-and-paste mosaics serve as the main prints in the collection.
Materials from everyday life are directly transformed into prints without further abstraction. The final outfit in the collection is entirely white, representing how temple elements are slowly covered over with paint, eventually leaving only protective talismans standing firm — becoming the smallest temple, worn on the body.

By combining these design details, I try to express through clothing the unique charm of Taiwan’s temples merging with urban life to create a distinctive streetscape. During visits, it becomes clear that beyond changes in temple architecture, the ways of faith have also subtly transformed.
“Faith remains there; only its form has quietly changed.”