Angel Chen found a kindred spirit in painter Jiajia Wang, whose lively and kinetic works feature large cartoon eyes at their center. On a video call from her showroom in Shanghai, Chen explained that while she didn’t know Wang when they studied at Central Saint Martins together, she felt the works embodied the “Angel Chen spirit”—something fun and celebratory that bridges Eastern and Western cultures. Chen transformed Wang’s pink and blue paintings into prints, sometimes rendered in all-over sequins and adorned with additional crystals for a shimmering, appropriately cartoonish effect. His multicolor works became a supersized print used on camp shirts and a pleated gown, the paint strokes visible.
The most exciting propositions in Chen’s new collection have to do with form. She’s used a recycled nylon and memory polyester mix to create ruffles that crunch up and incorporated drawstrings into voluminous capes and utility trousers so silhouettes can shift from ballooning to slim. A collaboration with Canada Goose birthed a series of ingenious outerwear pieces that can be worn upside down, transforming from a boxy cropped shape to a bulbous cocoon. Chen began working with the company in February, visiting its headquarters just before COVID-19 shut down borders. On our video call, she showed off a neon pink anorak she’d styled into a bustier. Chen’s hybridized garments were already eye-catching, but in “these times” they’re bold and versatile in winning combination—especially when paired with her clunky boots with “dragon teeth” soles.
