Ziyu Ma (Taro)

Ziyu Ma (Taro), from Beijing, China, is a fashion design major student who graduated from Pratt Institute in New York. After graduating from Pratt Institute in 2022, she continued her studies in fashion design for womenswear at the Royal College of Art.

She excels at using bright and bold colours, abstract prints, creative textiles, and exaggerated fashion silhouettes in her work to highlight the themes and ideas she wants to express.

Her new collection, made entirely of knitted fabric, was designed and created over the course of almost six months.

The concept of her graduation collection:

Ziyu’s work is inspired by the movie “Annihilation,” which tells a story about “complete destruction” and “rebirth,” and also contains the fantasy of advanced alien life. The movie “Annihilation” suggests that whenever something is destroyed, something new is born. Thus, it explores the origin of all things and the cycle of death and rebirth. In Ziyu’s opinion, annihilation is not the dead silence and nothingness after the explosion, but a glorious rebirth, the immortality of matter, and the cycle of life. Therefore, Ziyu’s work is full of fantasy and colour.

This project also incorporates concepts from the Yangshao Banpo culture in China, which dates back about 6,000 years. Both the Yangshao Banpo culture and the movie “Annihilation” explore the origin of all things and alien civilizations. Additionally, in the Yangshao Banpo culture, there are numerous totems depicting human-fish combinations, expressing the ancient Chinese people’s yearning for the infinite cycle and rebirth of life, thus deeply exploring the theme of life’s origin and continuation.

Ziyu also found surprising similarities in the appearance of land creatures and fish in the sea, prompting exploration into the origin and genetic similarities of all things. This leads to reflections on whether there is DNA refraction and simulation between creatures in real life, as mentioned in the movie “Annihilation.”

“Origin and Awe: The Connection between Humans and Fish” is an interdisciplinary art project. Through Ziyu’s garment and textile designs, she hopes her target audience, viewers, and models can experience the effects of simulating fish characteristics while wearing her garments, prompting thoughts on the mysterious relationship between humans and fish. The project aims to deepen our understanding of the origin of all things, the cycle of life, and cultural heritage, and celebrate the common human fascination with the mystery of life.

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