brand
A-Jane
Words by Katie Farley
Artfully amalgamating a stylish symphony that centers around sartorial sensibility and an injection of musicality for her spring/summer 2018 collection, A-Jane’s striking and thought-provoking aesthetics transport her into a unique and creative niche that sets her apart from other designers. A-Jane takes you on a journey, navigating different paths and discovers your most inner depth of self, emotions, fears, desires, and demons.
Pushing boundaries that are still within the realms of ready-to-wear encompass the designer’s aspiration for the label, applying the medium New Fashion as a way of exposing such depths. New Fashion employs a multifaceted synthesis of abstract art, expressionism and new music (Neue Musik), where designs can confront the norm. The objective of A-Jane is about embracing imperfection itself as a form of beauty and perfection, not obeying the stereotypical roles that culture and society place upon humanity.
Alice Jane Chang is no stranger to the world of fashion. Having previously attained the positions of personal shopper and boutique owner, a realization was to shortly kick in that another avenue of art was waiting to be pursued, namely fashion, where she established her label in early 2015. Originally from Johor Bahru situated in Malaysia, the upcoming designer studied film, electronic and new music at University of Music Freiburg, Germany, and is now acknowledged as the Fashion Composer, where her contemporary sartorial visions radiate everything that she is.
“When I was studying in Germany, I learned to think outside the box and open up in order to create something different and unexpected,” confesses Alice. “Fashion and music are both art, and quite similar. It depends on how you apply the concept, form, and dynamics of the designs. After all, anyone can play the piano if they want to, but how many can play with conviction?
Designing in Malaysia, the typical clientele is sartorially driven in the route of classical and conservative, albeit, a change in fashion direction is beginning to arise and is an innovative avenue that A-Jane is eager to peruse amid her somewhat unorthodox garments. With this said, she values a wearability quality throughout her design process, as much as remaining true to her label’s philosophy to “challenge the norm and stretch boundaries”. The A-Jane brand exhibits an extensive and eclectic consumer age range, attracting women from eighteen to seventy, which perhaps implies that the designer has a winning fashion formula. Chang additionally keeps her consumers sartorially engaged, where every three months she designs a new collection, whether it be in the presentation of resort, ready-to-wear or others.
A-Jane’s debut spring/summer 2018 collection was exhibited down the runway of this year’s Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week, acknowledged as one of the most prestigious fashion events in the country. Her twenty-four-piece capsule collection entitled ‘Dissonanz’ (disharmony), is a beautifully crafted series of minimalist clothing inspired by architecture and of course, music. The garments transpire as a liberated attitude in an individual’s feelings towards a concept of imperfections that challenge the difference amid the truth as opposed to what people desire to believe. The collection witnesses an artful dichotomy between expressive silhouettes, proportions of inconsistency, juxtaposing color tones, raw, fragmentary edges, and conflicting characteristics.
A-Jane’s expressive application of sophisticated yet melodramatic styles evokes a bold, contemporary aesthetic that infuses a myriad of influences, which is ultimately indicative of twenty-first century avant-gardism at its finest.
