Client: Nicole HON Paris (fashion brand)
Date: Jan 16th 2020
Location: Paris
Since 2017, I've annually crafted a Chinese Zodiac-themed illustration series during the Spring Festival, intertwining it with fashion elements to promote my brand, Nicole HON Paris.
The Rat-year piece began its draft in December 2019 amid numerous forewarnings of impending misfortune. Hence, I employed the symbolism of "Rat biting through the sky" to break the spell. Legend holds that at the genesis of creation, chaos enveloped until a rat chewed through the heavens, instigating the flow of gases, thus separating yin and yang. The rat, henceforth, symbolizes the deity responsible for the universe's birth and fertility.
This Rat King, adorned with a cherry blossom tattoo, dons a robe featuring Utagawa Kuniyoshi's "Soma no furudairi." Holding a folding fan and a small mallet, it bites through the night's curtain, ushering in dawn while dancing. The "Equinox flower" motifs on the fan represent one of the embroidered elements from their haute couture series "poppy love," crafted using bubble-filled vials.
The small mallet, a legendary Japanese tool, is said to grant wishes upon being swung, symbolizing wealth and blessings. As we reflect on 2020, the world seemed to grope through darkness. Quoting the Dark Knight, "The night is darkest just before the dawn. And I promise you, the dawn is coming."
