Hanbok activities in Xitang
The Hanbok Cultural Week in Xitang, which attracts countless Hanbok enthusiasts every year, has become a key promotional program of the local government and the tourism bureau, and it is a grand party for Hanbok enthusiasts, who may be regarded as "foreigners" here when they are dressed in modern, fashionable clothes. "The week has become a key promotion program of the local government and the tourism bureau. The initiator of Hanfu Culture Week is Fang Wenshan, Jay Chou's lyricist, who sees pop music as a medium for traditional culture. For the past hundred or even several hundred years, Western civilization has been the dominant force in shaping the history of global cultural development. But now, these rules should be broken. Chinese culture, which used to be saddled with a curiosity lens, is gradually being given its due due in the rise of Eastern cultural consciousness; and China's great economic and cultural achievements have put the microphone for storytelling in the hands of the country's people, especially China's younger generations.
As China's power grows stronger, the younger generation is taking the initiative to learn more about the country's long history and to express their national identity through the Chinese dress they wear. Over the past decade, the number of hanbok enthusiasts has grown - they wear the richly patterned, large silhouettes of hanbok to meet friends, attend parties, and as everyday wear.
"The concept of hanfu originated with a group of classic culture enthusiasts," says Yiheng Zhao, a research assistant at the Reynolds Journalism Institute at the University of Missouri, who is a hanfu They want China to bring the Chinese dress to the world. "They want China to see the hanbok as traditional formal wear, like the Japanese kimono and the Korean hanbok. It is a symbol of cultural revival and encourages people to trace their ancient Chinese traditions." According to an annual report released last year by Hanfu Information, a group of hanfu enthusiasts, about 3.61 million people self-identify as hanfu enthusiasts, a 77 percent increase from 2018, of which 86 percent are women and 15 percent are men. in 2019, Taobao ****has 1,188 orthodox Hanbok retailers, a 45.8 percent increase year-over-year, and the numbers are based on findings from a survey the group conducted with 2,276 participants.
Looking back at the history of the Han Chinese dress, the process of its development was suppressed after the Qing's entry into the country - the Qing rulers wanted to replace the Han Chinese dress with the cheongsam to consolidate their power in the Central Plains, which had a large Han Chinese population. Later, in the New China period, the Han Chinese dress was marginalized and its cultural and historical value was still not re-appreciated, while the cheongsam became the representative of traditional Chinese dress along with the popular culture of film and television. After the development of China's economic and cultural modernization, the Hanfu, which appeared much earlier than the cheongsam, began to be popular in China's mainstream cultural circles.
In addition, the popularity of hanfu has been fueled by Chinese costume dramas, which have become one of the most sought-after genres in China over the past decade. From early Chinese classic TV dramas such as Dream of the Red Chamber and Romance of the Three Kingdoms to contemporary favorites such as The Legend of Wu Mei Niang and Luang Pagang, an adaptation of an online historical novel, the younger generation in China has grown up seeing traditional Hanboks appearing on screen almost every day.
Stills from the TV series "Luangya List"
At the same time, traditional philosophies such as Confucianism and Taoism have begun to make their way into classrooms, where the younger generation is being encouraged to learn more about traditional culture. This top-down approach to preserving traditional Chinese culture has allowed more young Chinese to realize that their love of the Hanbok is not a "cultural shame," but rather a way to find a sense of national cultural identity.
Wearing hanbok in the present day is not required to be a "100% replica" of what archaeologists have shown to be the historical reality. In Yiheng Zhao's view, it is more like "a new-age urban subculture similar to cosplay and Japanese lolita costumes", or "a Chinese version of Afrofuturism". "More than 65.1 percent of hanbok enthusiasts preferred to keep the historical originals but with prettier fabrics, while 18.7 percent preferred modernized versions, according to the Hanbok Information report.
But there is no universal hanbok style, and there probably never will be. That's because different occasions, eras and needs can transform the form of hanbok into different styles and ways of accessorizing. From royalty to officials and warriors, each dynasty and each class of members has its own unique style, and further changes according to different purposes, whether it is for religious ceremonies, weddings, funerals or daily wear, there are a variety of different styles, which is one of the reasons why the modern hanbok has so many styles and varieties.
The revival of traditional culture and the rapid growth of the overseas Chinese population have opened a new chapter in the development of Chinese Hanbok overseas. The growth of the Hanbok trend outside of China is attributed to the large number of overseas Chinese immigrants. As more and more young Chinese people choose to study abroad, Hanbok enthusiasts are gradually finding fellow fans abroad. According to the interest group Hanfu Map, there are 41 registered Hanfu organizations outside of China, each with at least a few hundred members. Liang Ming, a social worker and founder of the New York Hanfu Corporation, says, "Wearing Hanfu makes overseas Chinese feel a real connection to their cultural heritage. Besides helping to promote Chinese culture to other communities, it can also be a useful way to socialize." In New York, hanbok enthusiasts also hold "craft nights," music and dance performances, and outdoor gatherings at landmarks such as Central Park and Times Square to spread awareness of hanbok.
Hanfu event in Central Park, organized by the New York Hanfu Organization
Olivia Chen is the director of the Hanfu Interest Group in Los Angeles. Since 2013, she says, the group's membership has grown tenfold to more than 300. Before the outbreak, she organized monthly events, such as celebrating traditional Chinese festivals or hosting parties where people wore hanfu to practice seal-carving and make hair clips," Olivia says. "In the Southern California area, the Song and Ming Dynasty styles of hanfu are very popular among hanfu enthusiasts. There is relatively complete documentation and artifacts supporting the costumes of the Song and Ming dynasties, and the styles are more applicable to today's daily life and activities."
Los Angeles 'hanfu interest group'
Ming observes that the qiqi 襦裙 - a high-waisted traditional dress worn by women in the Sui, Tang and Fifth Dynasties - is popular among groups of young girls in New York. At the same time, Song dynasty dress styles, which are easy to mix and match with contemporary clothing, are becoming more popular, thanks to the number of dramas set in the Song dynasty period in recent years.
Over the years, the hanbok industry has grown to significant proportions. "Assuming that these hanbok enthusiasts buy a complete set of hanbok every three months, the market value of hanbok will reach 5 billion yuan," Lv Xiaowei said. "Some investment organizations have predicted that the value of the hanfu market in 2019 will already be worth between 8 billion and 10 billion yuan, if you count those who buy hanfu for various needs such as photo shoots or musical performances, tea ceremonies and cultural events."
According to Hanbok Info, a hanbok set can cost as little as 100 yuan or as much as 10,000 yuan for a customized set, with those priced between 100 and 500 yuan accounting for 70 percent of the market. The most expensive hanbok Ming ever bought came from Ming Hua Tang, costing 12,000 yuan, and she waited four months for it to be made exclusively for her by specialists. The number of people like Ming waiting for customized Hanbok from Ming Hua Tang is already lined up until the end of 2021.
Cheng Chi-kong, chief executive of Hong Kong-listed New World Development Group, told WWD that he's excited to see the revival of high-end Chinese craftsmanship that hanboks have set off. "Cultural heritage preservation is highly valued in China, and we wanted to know the hidden value behind this craft," he said. "Millennials, especially Gen Z, are very interested in this field of knowledge and a huge paradigm shift is coming. I think people are going to go back and explore their cultural origins so they can recognize how we created this exquisite textile."
When asked about the future of hanfu, Yiheng Zhao said, "I'd really like to see a traditional culture-oriented, Internet-based movement to shape the elite fashion industry. I don't think the day is far off when hanfu will become part of mainstream fashion, although it may not be in the form we see today." Ming believes that hanfu still has a long way to go before it is fully accepted by mainstream Chinese society. There's always been this misconception that wearing hanfu is the same as wearing historical clothing or cosplaying," he said."
Lu Xiaowei, however, is optimistic. Wearing hanfu equates to being out of touch with modern social activities, which Lu Xiaowei believes is a big misconception about hanfu. "What I want the public to understand is that hanfu can be fully integrated into our modern lifestyle. We can see young people wearing Hanfu also using cell phones and computers, as well as driving and even riding bicycles in Hanfu. We can also go to work, play sports, go shopping, cook, and even bungee jump and ski in hanfu," said Lv Xiaowei.