Designer Profile 2022: David Chen
I chatted with David Chen, a former design director and returning designer for the upcoming MODA Nouveau fashion show. We discussed his experience behind the scenes as a design director, the importance of going back to basics, gender-neutrality in clothing, and the way change and distortion in his own life are reflected in his designs.
On DBC and being a design director:
I didn't join MODA until my second year—my first year, I was a little intimidated by how well-dressed everyone was. I decided to just put myself out there and apply for DBC, and I got in. I had these crazy ideas I had to whittle down and make more realistic.
I put three looks onto the runway, and then last year—my third year—I was a design director with David Schalop. I had such a great time my second year and really enjoyed the whole experience, so I wanted to contribute even more. On top of being a design director, I designed three more looks.
I signed up to be a design director during Spring of my second year, and I thought that COVID was going to blow over and we’d go back to normal. That didn’t happen, so David and I had to create a whole new DBC program and format when it all turned virtual.
Still, it was a really fun experience and I got to work even more closely with the designers. I may have put off my designs a little bit, and in the last few weeks leading up to the show I was in a frenzy. I came up with three pieces centered around sustainability. I had one friend who had this earthworm, compost look. My roommate was a metal straw. It was just really fun, and this year I decided to take a step back—David and I both thought it would be good to have underclassmen take on these larger roles, so that once we left they would be even more prepared. We’re still a ready resource, regardless. I’ve been able to focus more on designing this year and haven’t left it to the last minute!
Is there anything from that experience that translated into how you’ve approached designing this year?
Last year for the DBC program, we didn’t have a professional designer come in and teach the bootcamp participants like in the previous years. We created a whole new curriculum where regular designers could come in and teach DBC. It really make me think about going back to the basics, which is what I’ve been focusing my designs around this year. I’ve made basic clothes—skirts, vests, jackets, things like that—and I’ve been focusing on the details. Having straight lines, no frayed edges. In the previous years my designs were much more conceptual, and I feel like I sort of hid behind flashier looks and focused less on those lines. This year, I’ve taken the time to have a nicer construction.
Now, I’m at the point where I want to distort and deconstruct. Now that I’m a fourth year and graduation is so close I can see it, I’ve been looking back on my college years. COVID changed a lot. During quarantine, I made a lot of food with my mom, and now I’ve been trying to deconstruct recipes and refigure them—the idea of distortion has been on my mind a lot. With my designs this year, I want to focus on the basics and distort them.
On his sketches:
These are really quick sketches. I had ideas in the fall and the deadline was coming up, so I came up with them really quickly. I don’t know how close any of my pieces right now are to these exactly, but I think they’re representative of the bigger picture. These were the starting point of me focusing on construction rather than the look, and starting off simple. The slip dress is simple, and the jacket is just a cropped jacket that I wanted to explore distorting the shape of. Playing with the silhouettes of clothes as well—the overshirt/vest and the skirt combination, the chains.
Right now I’m at a stage where I’m hoping for my models to come in and vibe with my clothing. Seeing if they’re comfortable with what I’ve made so far—how they literally fit, their personalities. It’s all representative of distorting expectations. For example, one of the skirts isn’t actually being worn, it’s just being used as a cover piece. It’s long and exaggerated. The pants in one design have been cut in half and are going to be attached with rings and chains. Separating and re-attaching, playing around with re-construction.
What is your favorite aspect of the design process?
I tend to approach designing just as I approach creative writing, which is by having self-imposed deadlines and sitting there for hours, getting in the zone and churning something out eventually. I think that’s just how I’ve worked, as someone who writes and designs. That’s really helpful for me, to eliminate all the other thoughts in your head and really zone in on what you’re doing—having a playlist or something going on. No, actually, I tend to put the same music on repeat for hours.
On inspiration:
In my first year designing, I put three really masculine guys in dresses. Growing up Chinese, I would spend time in our restaurant drawing dresses and would have family members and friends say, oh, you shouldn’t draw dresses, dresses are for girls. I kept that in my mind. Clothes are so gender neutral, I don’t think there should be an association. Skirts and dresses are really comfortable—pants are restricting, I kind of hate it. I’ve just been having fun trying on all different kinds of clothes during this process.
It’s been a long time coming. I feel like throughout history there have been waves of men wearing dresses and skirts, and now it’s sort of evolving into an anybody can wear anything type thing, which I really like. When I first approached men in dresses during my first year designing, I thought about Billy Porter wearing that fabulous gown on the red carpet. There was a tension there. Harry Styles really broke into the mainstream in terms of men painting their nails and wearing dresses—no hate on Harry Styles, I think it’s great there was some sort of spark there—but It’s been a long time coming, people have been doing it for a while.
My parents have raised me to be really frugal, which I really appreciate. A lot of my designs are made from clearance fabrics, and last year the garments were made from actual trash and scraps. It’s been really fun to keep all these things in mind.
What are you looking forward to most about the show?
Being back in person! I’m so excited. I will say a caveat to that is now our attendees are going to be restricted again. Something really great about last year, being remote, is that anybody who wanted to watch MODA could see it virtually. But the energy of being in person is insane.
One of our faculty advisors was talking about how he went to a state school, and UChicago students don’t have that state school energy—and he said it, not me, so don’t quote me on that. But the fashion show is one of the events at the school where people are together and so lively. I do want to say that I think even now at this school, there seems to be this energy that’s very much restricted to people who, y’know, buy expensive clothing and show up to MODA front row. That dynamic still exists.
But so many different communities of people come together. I don't know what to expect from this year’s show, coming off the virtual one, but that's what makes it exciting.
On creating new experiences for designers:
When David and I were design directors, we really got an insider sense of control over so much, like being able to create a class of designers. We got to rework the budget, too, and were able to provide a good amount of money for people to really explore. It provides an opportunity for people to explore something without buying into it. We interviewed a lot of really cool kids who were interested in fashion, from the buying aspect to the construction aspect.
Through the process, we create a really diverse class of people that bring in a diverse group of models. It creates a unified experience at the show that brings all different types of people together. I don’t think anyone should ever feel intimidated.
Images courtesy of David Chen. See his designs at MODA Nouveau on May 6th, 2022.
