China’s iconic qipao celebrates its distinct fashion culture

SHANGHAi – A new exhibition at the Shanghai Museum brings to the limelight the iconic Chinese qipao (cheongsam), featuring pop singer Jeff Chang’s collection and donated garments from socialite Chiang Shih-yun (1912-2016), also known as Aileen Pei.

Glamour and Modernity Beyond Shanghai is the Shanghai Museum’s first large-scale thematic exhibition on artistic fashion apparel. The exhibition runs from Tuesday to May 5, and showcases 306 artifacts and sets of artifacts.

The main exhibits have been selected from the nearly 300 pieces donated by Patricia Pei, the daughter of Chiang, and Jeff Chang’s vast collection. They are on display alongside objects borrowed from other institutions, including the Shanghai History Museum, the Soong Ching Ling Memorial Residence in Shanghai, and the Shanghai Auto Museum.

From the mid-1800s, Shanghai gradually developed into an international metropolis where Chinese and Western aesthetics and creative ideas merged, cultivating a distinct urban outlook and fashion culture. The qipao, with its body-hugging silhouette, appeared widely in magazines, movies and posters, becoming the signature style of Shanghai.

“Qipao is not just a garment but a wearable piece of history,” Chu Xiaobo, director of the Shanghai Museum, said at the exhibition’s opening on Monday. He compares the Shanghai-style qipao to a prism traversing time and space, refracting the brilliant radiance of China’s 20th-century aesthetic evolution and cultural self-awareness.

Pop singer Jeff Chang (second left) talks about his qipao collection at the Shanghai Museum news release. PHOTO: CHINA DAILY

The exhibition uses qipao, a highly influential cultural symbol, as the starting point to systematically explore and present the evolution of fashion and lifestyle in Shanghai through the past century, he says. To best present the cut, fabrics and details of the design, the Shanghai Museum displays some of the garments without glass protectors and has special mannequins to illustrate the feminine shapes throughout the 20th century.

Accessories and other objects dating to specific featured periods in each of the four chapters are displayed alongside the garments. A cream-colored Austin 10 Saloon car stands at the entrance, greeting visitors with the glamour of 1930s Shanghai.

Pop singer Chang played an essential role in the exhibition’s curatorial design. A renowned musician of enduring popularity in the Chinese music scene, Chang is also a collector of exceptional insight and exquisite taste, Chu says.

Last year, Chang donated 12 qipao to the Shanghai Museum and filmed a new music video in Shanghai Museum East. The collaboration with Chang is part of the museum’s efforts to break boundaries, Chu says. “We hope to work with cultural icons and celebrities beloved by the public to tell of history and culture in a more approachable and relatable way, and to attract younger generations to visit museums.”

At the opening, Chang said he has carried a special fondness for Shanghai throughout his over 30-year career. He has collected many items from Shanghai, including furniture, historical documents, and more. The qipao, he believes, represents the unique beauty of the East. He recalls that his grandmother loved qipao. “We once had a thief break into the house, who stole nothing else but her beautiful qipao,” he told the media.

The exhibition Glamour and Modernity Beyond Shanghai takes place at the Shanghai Museum on People’s Square from Tuesday to May 5. PHOTO: CHINA DAILY

“Each of these garments has a background story. They look elegant and graceful, or avant-garde …although they stand quietly in the exhibition, I think each of them tells its story to the viewer,” he said.

Socialite Chiang, whose garments were also donated to the exhibition, is the daughter of a Chinese diplomat and the wife of banker Tsuyee Pei (1893-1982) from Shanghai. The family moved to the United States in the 1940s. Chiang died in Manhattan, New York, at the age of 104.

“My mother grew up in an environment shaped by the fusion of Chinese and Western cultures,”Patricia Pei says. “Living through a century in both traditional Chinese and global design, she developed a unique perspective and her own sense of style.

“By donating her clothing and personal effects to the Shanghai Museum, we can preserve her legacy. I hope that her intuitive understanding of fashion and her insights into East-West design are brought to life in the exhibition.”