Profile: CHU YINGHSUAN – Real Leather Design Competitions

CHU YINGHSUAN

Shih Chien University

Hello I’m Inez, as a fashion designer and multidisciplinary visual artist, my practice is rooted in a post-gender world-view, where identity exists as a fluid, ongoing performance. I view the human body not as a fixed entity, but as a site for continuous reconfiguration. My creative spectrum spans from the precision of graphic design and photography to the visceral tactility of nail art, hair-sculpting, and the tension of rope-work (Shibari). At the core of my work is a relentless obsession with material translation. I specialize in manipulating diverse textures—merging organic leather with synthetic elements—to mimic the raw, unsettling beauty of human skin. By distorting and molding these surfaces, I create a "second skin" that functions as both a shield and a bridge between the biological and the engineered. For me, fashion is a radical act of self-prosthesis. Every detail, from the curve of a metal exoskeleton to the grain of a distressed hide, serves to redefine the boundary between the "self" and the "other," ultimately constructing a holistic narrative where the soul is liberated from the constraints of binary labels.

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Hardware Of Will: The Non-Social Prosthetics

Category: Footwear

Competitions: Taiwan Region

Driven by Judith Butler’s theory of Gender Performativity, this project deconstructs footwear as a mere accessory, reimagining it as a set of "Non-medical Subjective Prosthetics." In a world where identity is constantly eroded by social obligations and the "gaze" of others, these pieces serve as a defensive hardware—a brace for the inner self amidst the shifting tides of responsibility and geography. The work captures the "performativity traces" of existence. I utilize the biological memory of leather to document the exhaustion and friction of social navigation, while simultaneously engineering rigid skeletal structures to represent an unwavering core of self-recognition. It is a radical act of spontaneous body reconfiguration, where the wearer reconstructs their own boundaries before they can be defined by the world.