With a new atelier in Beijing, the fashion house Jay Ahr champions Chinese crafts through Western design.
The label’s Belgian-born designer, Jonathan Riss, is known for his beautiful forms and intricate details.
Having completed his first ready-to-wear presentation during Paris Fashion Week last month, Riss is publicising his collaboration with Chinese artisans and embroiderers in his Beijing atelier, which opened a few months ago, after a long fascination with the country.
"When I began Jay Ahr, I worked with a girl from Beijing,” Riss says from his luxurious Paris flagship store on Rue du Juillet. “I’d never been to China before, so I told her I wanted to go with her one time.”
He went in 2003, “and I fell in love with China – the people and their traditions”, he says. “My travels to this beautiful country took me to the northern region, where I discovered a village of people who did this incredible embroidery – very traditional Chinese thread embroidery.”