30r364 boek.qxd:awards book 11 - Prince Claus Fund

Ma KeChinaA bold voice in contemporary fashion design, Ma Ke (b. 1971, Changchun) asserts the culturaland social dimensions of clothing the human body. While studying, Ma Ke found that ideas ofunique designs incorporating local cultural value, using sustainable materials and skilled crafts -manship, were considered ‘wu yong’ (useless). Confronted by the local clothing industry with itscheap, homogenising mass-production and poorly paid workers whose skill is not valued, and bya fashion scene lacking local aesthetic influence and dominated by foreign labels, she dedicatedherself to developing her ‘useless’ ideas. She produces simple, organic and locally inspiredcasual wear, and demonstrates conceptual and highly creative design in her ‘WUYONG, the Earth’collection of powerful, sculpted forms. This dramatic collection references China’s rich historyand highlights the role of time and natural processes, the qualities of organic materials andthe value of handcraft. It questions the values propagated through clothing in modern culturesacross the world, critiquing the consumerism, superficiality and commercialisation of inter -national fashion and the erasure of unique local historical and cultural memories.Ma Ke is honoured for the superb craftsmanship and aesthetic quality of her work, for high -lighting the complex interactions of clothing, culture and the body, and for promoting socially,culturally and environmentally sensitive design and production.[from the 2008 Prince Claus Awards Jury Report]Culture and the Human Body63