I-I TSAI

The collection centres on the idea of “modifying the self,” exploring how people search for their true selves while being continuously shaped, broken down, and repaired in response to society’s fixed standards of success, beauty, and goodness. I imagine clothing as a kind of battle garment, marked by time and conflict. Every abrasion, crack, and repair symbolises the changes a person undergoes through growth. Rather than concealing these scars, I want to preserve them, allowing imperfection to become part of one’s identity.

The primary material is distressed leather, combined with recycled metal hardware that has been dismantled, reassembled, and repurposed, giving discarded or worn materials a renewed form. Colour is developed through aged dyeing, abrasion, and uneven surface treatments, revealing the layered textures and character left behind by the passage of time.

The design deliberately retains traces of patching, damage, reconstruction, and repair, transforming the act of “modification” into a language of dress. For me, modifying the self is not about erasing the past or becoming someone who conforms to established standards. Rather, it is about accepting the parts that cannot be perfectly repaired after repeated cycles of destruction and reconstruction, and ultimately forming a self that is as real and singular as a battle-worn garment.