Poetry: Global Qipao Invitational Exhibition, 2020

The CNSM (China National Silk Museum) is located near the West Lake in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. It was founded in 1992 and was one of the first state museums created in China, and one of the largest specialised textile museums in the world. Its objective is the research, preservation and display of textiles and clothing, and telling their history from antiquity to the present day.

The Qipao (pronounced Chipao) was the dress of the mandarins. Fitted and with a high collar, as we know it today, it was created in 1920 in Shanghai, and it quickly became fashionable among women of the upper classes and celebrities.

The CNSM (China National Silk Museum) in Hang Zhou organises an exhibition as part of the Hangzhou World Qipao Festival, which promotes the interaction between culture and tourism, tradition and fashion, art and life, China and the world.

The 2020 exhibition featured more than 40 Qipaos designed by more than 30 fashion designers, artists from 10 countries, taking inspiration from the theme ‘Poetry’. The exhibition took place on the second floor of the Fashion Room of the museum. The exhibited works have been part of the museum's permanent collection ever since.