The former Taiwanese makers of Barbie dolls are now aiming to create a Barbie with Taiwanese characteristics.
The Meining Workshop in Taishan District (泰山), New Taipei City (新北市), earlier this month launched a costume design scheme to drum up new ideas for Taiwanese-style costumes for the “Mattel girls.”
Five designers of various ages were invited to the design program, all hoping to come up with design concepts that could interpret Taiwanese history and culture, New Taipei Doll’s Community Cooperative Association manager Ku Tsuei-eh (古翠娥) said.
Photo: CNA
Among the five was local designer Edelweiss Liu (劉美芬), who launched a collection of low--carbon clothing made of environment-friendly fabrics called “S.Cafe” — a material produced from coffee grounds — at the 2010 Shanghai Expo.
Liu once again focused on an environmental theme for the “Mattel girls.” She used eco-friendly fabrics that could be recycled and remanufactured to create a one-shoulder design that brings out feminine delicacy and sexiness, Ku said.
Another designer, Hsu Chiu-i (徐秋宜), said she used the color brick-red to create her motif, the “Farmer-ish,” which reflected a common yearning among 30-somethings for a simple life as a farmer.
Combining red, white and blue, Wu Su-chen (巫素珍) displayed a series of designs called the “Wedding gowns of eternal harmony.” Wu said her creations mixed cultural elements from the East and West by integrating Chinese styles, such as plum blossoms and qipao collars, with Victorian tiered skirts and Western-style long-tailed wedding gowns.
Designer Lin Ming-yi (林明宜), winner of a fashion design award in Japan, was also among the participants. By weaving various shades of pink fibers together, Lin said she hoped to convey the ideas of racial harmony and mutual tolerance.
Tainan University of Technology student Huang Yu-hui (黃郁惠), the youngest designer among the group and a winner of the Taiwan Fashion Design Award last year, launched a costume design produced through knitting techniques.
“Through diverse perspectives of the future, present and past generations, we hope to create a series of costume designs that can fit various age levels,” Ku said. “So we can transform from an original equipment manufacturing production site of Barbie Dolls for Western countries into a cultural creative manufacturer that produces our own Taiwan-brand ‘Mattel girls.’”
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
RSS