The Dress of Deception
Provocated by the Hunger Games prequel The Ballard of Songbird and Snakes, The Dress of Deception is a traditional Chinese garment - Qipao subverted by the three-dimensional rose grown from it, breaking the streamlined silhouette with defiance and rebellion.
The rose is a recurring motif associated with Coriolanus Snow. The red rose on The Dress of Deception is beautiful but cunning, luring you in. The white buttons like specks of snow.
Red symbolises luck and fortune in Chinese culture, whereas, in Western culture, it can symbolise love, lust, pain and betrayal. In colour contrast, white symbolises purity and innocence in the West and is a colour of mourning in China. These themes echo the narrative the dress is inspired by and aims to portray.
The roses’ ability to adapt their position via the array of buttons conveys a sense of uncontrollability, just like when Snow loses Lucy Grey as she runs away, vanishing into the woods, not leaving a trace behind.