Tong Hao Lin is the mind and hand behind tunggiya, an emerging label grounded in material experimentation and the expression of inner self. As a Manchu originally from Jilin, China, Hao Lin creates work that draws from what’s been overlooked and the parts of identity that don’t always fit cleanly into place.

The foundation of each collection begins with constraint and improvisation: working from discarded fabric scraps and factory remnants that would typically go to waste and re-spinning them into workable thread. All the pieces are fully handcrafted, making each garment singular in construction and intention.

Persephone’s Last Canvas, his latest body of work and Vancouver Fashion Week debut, explores the emotional and visual language of seasonal decay through the myth of Persephone. Inspired by the transition between life and death, The 14 looks in this collection draws from the shapes and textures of autumn leaves in mid-fall, bare branches, and the skeletal lines of plants. With materials such as wool, chiffon, velvet, etc. silhouettes mimic natural forms, while the color palette reflects the transformation of foliage.

Through these choices, tunggiya leads the viewer into a garden on the verge of dormancy, a place where nothing settles for long and every form still decides what it might become.