Arts Thread

Be Girl. Be Good. is a textile-based project that explores women’s experiences navigating traditional gender roles, focusing on the journey from conformity to self-recognition. Using embroidery and knitting, the work reflects on how generational narratives and patriarchal values shape identity. Inspired by Moie cousin’s upbringing in the Chaoshan region of China where she was placed in foster care shortly after birth in preference for a son, the project traces how familial expectations and comparison to male siblings shaped her sense of self. As an adult, she distanced herself from her family to reclaim her path. Embroidery, reimagined through free-motion techniques, and knitting serve as tactile, temporal languages to voice these often-silenced stories. Drawing from Simone de Beauvoir’s concept of woman as “the Other,” the project examines how internalized roles are carried in the body and released through acts of making. Rather than providing critique or resolution, Be Girl. Be Good. creates a space for reflection. It contrasts tradition and innovation, expectation and agency, to explore how identity is formed, reformed, and quietly asserted through textile.

Through various free draping with the wire-knitting jacket, the shapes grew abstractly and jumped out of the garment’s shape. These shapes freeze time and space, reminding me that all good things are fleeting for a long time; therefore, this collection’s title is Ephemeral 001. This experimental project focuses on materiality and explores the potential of creating an in-between space across various dimensions. I converted the knitting into a print and tried to bring out the three-dimensional effect on this surface. At the same time, the fabric exists as a plane, and through cutting and sewing, it becomes a garment and realizes its 3D transformation on the human body. This project is also about illusion. In addition to the print mentioned above, I used laser cutting to cut out knitted shapes on the woven fabric. This collection is also my continued manifestation of girlish design. Girlish is a state of mind that has nothing to do with age or gender. The feminine and loose silhouette gives freedom to the body. Starting from practicality, each piece is easy to wear, and match, well-designed, and unique.

Peace and death, decay and eternity.