Vivienne Tam's Fall/Winter 2023 Collection Brings the Metaverse to Life

Photographs by Mich Cardin

On a sunny Friday afternoon in Manhattan's fashion district, Vivienne Tam does the first fitting for her Fall/Winter 2023 collection. Her show is two days away. In the studio, there are assistants steaming garments, shelves of colorful clothes, and a board on the wall showing the order of the entire collection. As he explains that the show is an immersive experience in the metaverse, I witness the physical work behind the virtual world.

And yet, the metaverse is at the heart of Tam's work. For Spring/Summer 2023 , she introduced metaverse themes to her collection with cartoon imagery, pixelated patterns across knitwear, and graphic patterns. “The last collection was focused on NFTs and bringing the virtual world into the physical world,” says Tam . “I want to [create a] bridge so that my clients can learn about the virtual world. I discovered that the world was truly limitless for creatives. I find it very inspiring and without limitations. I can do anything."

After more than 40 years of design, he maintains a love for the intricacies of work. “I love using my hand, doing things like embroidering and knitting.” Your mention of the word "weave" strikes me because while you are clearly talking about the physical weaving of textiles, it is true in more ways than one.

Tam's work is known to be a fusion of Eastern and Western aesthetics. After growing up and receiving her design degree in Hong Kong, she moved to New York City and established her brand in 1982. Drawing on her Hong Kong heritage, Tam's career is a master class in weaving opposing cultures into a collection of clothes

In the window of the showroom, bags with cartoon characters are placed; colorful knitted hats are being organized; and the embroidered patches of the Web3 avatars are lined up in rows. Tam's Fall/Winter 2023 collection features the Oracle Bone Bible , an ancient setting of Chinese characters believed to be the oldest Chinese scripts in the world. Holding up the sleeve of a turtleneck crop top, he tells me that these characters were "how [ancient Chinese civilizations] drew about the world, about animals" and that it was the "old world" way of "being with nature." ".

But this collection not only bridges two cultures, it brings more of Tam into the virtual world. "Textiles is about weaving and weaving the metaverse — it brings everyone together, all the NFT committees and the old world, the new world. It brings together all the virtual world committees, like NFTs, PFPs, all of this, together."

Illustrating this, Tam's show on Sunday night simulates a metaverse experience for the audience, bringing the virtual world into the physical, once again. In a space designed to resemble Spring Studios, guests will enter through a VIP walkway and then into the show space, where large windows look out over the rows of seats along the sides of the runway. After the show, backstage you can see the collection's inspiration board and photos of each model in their runway look lined the wall. There, visitors to the metaverse can tune in to a live feed from the real-life backstage area as the models get ready.

For every new technological invention, there are always those who fear it or don't understand it. But then there are the pioneers, the ones who push the boundaries when they see the potential or are at least willing to pursue it. While Tam's love of the design process is what drives her, she's not blind to the vast possibilities that the metaverse opens up. Instead, he embraces it and at the same time weaves "history and humanity" into the virtual world, something that is needed.