Designer Cong Tri brings the spirit of 'rice' into silk at Tokyo Fashion Week.

Calling from Tokyo right after the show ended, Vietnam's number one designer couldn't hide his emotions. He shared that he felt very satisfied and was still euphoric after the launch of BTS No. 9. Cong Tri added that before the official show, although everything had been meticulously prepared, he and his team still felt a little nervous about a world-class fashion show like this. Yesterday, during the stage rehearsal with the organizing committee, Cong Tri discussed stage and lighting ideas for his performance. "They listened to my personal ideas very attentively and willingly. The organizing committee and I adjusted the stage to match my wishes and the characteristics of my collection. All aspects and tasks here were arranged very scientifically and modernly by the organizing committee," he said. From the moment supermodel Kim Nhung stepped out from backstage until the end of the show, the designer felt extremely satisfied and it was even better than he had imagined in the days leading up to it.

Designer Cong Tri

Tokyo Fashion Week is part of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2016, one of the four most prestigious fashion weeks in the world. Cong Tri was the only official representative from Vietnam invited to participate. This time, he brought to Japan his latest Haute Couture designs from his No. 9 collection titled "Rice," primarily using Lanh My A silk.

This return to Japan marks a reunion after 15 years, since the young designer Nguyen Cong Tri first brought his "Green Leaves" collection to the land of cherry blossoms, which helped him shine at the Vietnam Collection Grand Prix competition in Vietnam and was further recognized with an award from Bay FM channel within the framework of the Makuhari Awards. If "Green Leaves" back then was a nostalgic tribute to the uniforms of soldiers who sacrificed their youth for the country, then "Rice" today simply represents the refined aesthetic emotions of a seasoned Vietnamese man devoted to his homeland. "I am Vietnamese. Everything related to this country is always the main emotion in my collections," Cong Tri proudly shared.

The "treasure" that Cong Tri chose to bring abroad this time is the legendary Lanh My A silk from Vietnam. From this incredibly precious material, Cong Tri once again applied his creative mind and unique aesthetic sense, infusing the renowned fabric with a modern and fresh feel. The smocking technique, creating a rich fabric surface that is a signature style of the designer from Collection No. 7, was fully exploited, combined with the deep, glossy black of Lanh My A silk and the art of meticulous detail arrangement to create a purely Vietnamese fabric that is both familiar and yet strangely captivating, creating an impressive visual appeal for each garment from the very first glance.

“I don’t aim to shock anyone every time I return; I just want to do my best, and treat each collection as if it were my last. For me, creativity at this point is not just about passion and enthusiasm anymore, but also about responsibility. Responsibility to myself, to the audience who have trusted me, and to what I have achieved on my journey.” Cong Tri’s sharing once again filled the audience with pride and admiration, not only for his talent and remarkable work ethic, but also for the way he has dedicated his heart and soul to cherishing and preserving the beautiful cultural values ​​of his homeland.

The Thanh