KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 15 - Fashion designer Justin Chew has had several collections since we last interviewed him a year ago together with his friend and business partner, fashion designer Joe Chia. The duo started a pop-up showroom at Telawi, Bangsar in collaboration with their friends Nowhereman Coffee and Dumpwerks in November 2012.

Six months later, Chia and Chew decided to make the space permanent while collaborating with other friends in the industry. THISAPPEAR is the name of Chia and Chew’s collective - a fashion powerhouse that is now known overseas and locally with a cult following. Chia and Chew’s love for monochromatic fashion is their signature style.

Recently, we sat down with the calm and collected Chew for a chat on his latest Spring/Summer 2015 collection and everything in between.

“My Spring Summer 2015 collection is called Requiem and it is inspired by the movie Requiem For A Dream starring Jared Leto. It is based on the concept of the movie’s cutting scene which is similar to Martin Mayer and Quirin Empl’s mayer+empl 3D mapping where they use visuals, lights and effects on empty houses to create a different atmosphere,” said Chew.

The Raffles College of Higher Education graduate displays a maturity in his line of work, experimenting on graphics for his pieces, which are made using the silkscreen method with lines as fine as 0.01cm. “Nobody wanted to make lines as fine as that. They said it couldn’t be done,” said Chew. The determined fashion designer then decided to work on his entire Spring/Summer 2015 alone, spending days on each piece.

The collection also features tube dresses, where panels and layers are added and “seat-belts” with his label “JTNC” are created as straps for a pinafore-like one piece. Each top, bottom and dress falls naturally on the wearer’s body. “For my main line, I like to deconstruct and do it differently,” he said. For example, one of his jackets can also be used as a skirt. The tube dresses can also be worn as skirts and matched with one of his unisex hoodies.

Chew likes to explore androgynous looks such as this ensemble (left). Expect more avant-garde designs such as this dress from the up-and-coming fashion designer (right)

For his Requiem collection, Chew uses Japanese characters in some of his pieces. “I like the structure of Japanese characters,” said Chew. Katakana which has more straight lines than hiragana are chosen for its edgy yet cool appearance.

Prior to his Requiem collection, Chew launched a line with photographer and model Danny Lim called EXTREMELY GOUDE. The collaboration was a result of a test shoot where photographs from the shoot were used as a design for that collection.

For his Fall/Winter 2014 collection, Chew collaborated with NESTWO, a graffiti movement that is known for their art around the Telawi, Bangsar area. “I work closely with people with the same passion and over time we become good friends,” said Chew.

Chew’s business partner Chia is currently in Milan for a tradeshow. Sometime in July, Chew will be travelling to Paris and Milan to work on his main collection. As an independent fashion designer in Malaysia, Chew said his biggest competition is high street brands.

“Malaysians would compare high street brands with my work and they want something affordable. They want something value for money but they don’t see the time and hours spent on each piece,” said Chew.

Because of that, Chew also has a Basic line where he designs according to what he likes. “My basic line is simple but comfortable whereas for my main collection, I tend to be more experimental and expand on my creativity,” said Chew.

According to the him, the Requiem collection is what pops in his mind. He spent sleepless nights creating each piece by hand. If you want to own a Justin Chew creation, but you cannot afford his main collection, opt for his basic line that still sports his signature style.

A lot of his customers are young people from all over the world. He has sizes from slim fit to oversized and he follows the international standard of sizing. Most of his clothes are also unisex so you can just go full on with accessories and mix and match according to your taste.

The young designer did many collaborations in the past year with industry icons

During our last interview, we asked Chew why he only used black and white. “I actually try to add in one colour every season,” said the reserved fashion designer. For his Requiem collection, he uses a dark blue colour. When asked what is the upcoming trend for Malaysians, Chew said that people should just wear what they feel comfortable with.

“It is better to wear something you feel good about rather than to try hard and wear something over the top,” he said.

In two years’ time, Chew and Chia hope to collaborate with more independent fashion designers and create a bigger space for collections. “I think if there are more people coming to work together, we can make an impact and push for our local fashion industry to be well accepted,” said Chew.

Chew first appeared on the scene in 2010 when he debuted at MIFA 2010. In 2011, he was a finalist at MIFA 2011 Kronenbourg Who’s Next. Chew’s Basic line was launched in November 2013 at THISAPPEAR.

THISAPPEAR

20, Jalan Telawi 3 (2nd Floor), Bangsar Baru, 59100 KL

Open daily, 11am to 9pm

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thisappearkl

Instagram: http://instagram.com/THISAPPEAR_KL