A Dialogue Between Eastern Aesthetics and International Fashion at the Bagatti Valsecchi Museum
Chinese luxury womenswear brand LFAX presented its Spring/Summer 2027 collection, The Mind Wanders in an Empty Mirror, at Milan’s Bagatti Valsecchi Museum on September 24, 2026 in a presentation organised by Diamond Club. Taking the aesthetics of negative space in Song Dynasty painting and the Daoist philosophy of xūjìng, “emptiness and stillness”, as its point of departure, the collection established a cross-cultural dialogue between contemporary Eastern womenswear and a historic Western interior within a late nineteenth-century Neo-Renaissance residence. Founded in Shanghai, LFAX has consistently embodied the qualities of refinement, individuality, ease and quiet grandeur, creating a high-quality wardrobe for the contemporary woman for work, everyday life and semi-formal occasions. “Pleasing oneself” lies at the heart of the brand’s design philosophy. LFAX believes that thoughtful tailoring should allow the body to breathe, granting it freedom while creating a soft boundary within which the wearer can move with composure in any setting.
The Spring/Summer 2027 collection, The Mind Wanders in an Empty Mirror, continues this creative line of enquiry. Drawing on the misty landscapes, freehand orchid forms and lake reflections of Song Dynasty painting, the design team translated the Eastern aesthetic of “ordered naturalness” into the collection’s silhouettes, fabrics and details. The result evokes a contemporary woman of composure and reserve, grounded in quiet inner strength.
The collection focuses on the expression of an inner life. Its palette is drawn from landscapes and the natural world, with moon white, soft beige, distant-mountain ink, smoky blue-green and lake green accented by burgundy. Together, these shades create a muted colour palette that conveys a sense of air and movement. The fabric selection includes heavyweight mulberry silk, silk-wool blends, fluid crepe de chine, textured crinkled cloth, jacquard brocade and semi-sheer organza, balancing structural definition, fluid drape and a soft translucency. Tailoring moves away from close-fitting construction. Collarless designs, cape-like shoulders, relaxed columnar silhouettes and wrap-and-twist details create an expansive, unrestrained approach to dressing.
Craftsmanship is a defining element of the collection. Hand-formed velvet flowers, dimensional floral appliqué and hand-sewn beadwork are individually produced by specialist artisans, complemented by three-dimensional cut-out embroidery on organza, naturally crinkled textures and classic brocade jacquards. Ornament remains restrained and precise: flowers, beads and embroidery are placed at the neckline, placket and hem, creating shifting points of light as the body moves. Traditional Eastern craftsmanship is thereby translated into a refined fashion language for an international audience.
The Mind Wanders in an Empty Mirror translates the sense of air, order and negative space in Eastern aesthetics into clothing for contemporary women. Its focus is on an aesthetic sensibility that can be worn every day, rather than the literal use of Eastern symbols. In Milan, the collection invites a dialogue between contemporary womenswear and the city’s historic interiors.
The venue was chosen to reflect this aesthetic dialogue. Located in Milan’s Quadrilatero della Moda, the museum occupies a late nineteenth-century Neo-Renaissance residence furnished with paintings, furniture and decorative objects from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Following several site visits, the LFAX design team identified a profound affinity between the layered light among the residence’s columns and arcades, the stillness beneath its vaulted ceilings, and the sense of interplay between presence and absence pursued in Song Dynasty painting.
From Shanghai to Milan, LFAX has approached every step onto the international stage with substance and composure. The Milan presentation marks an important step in bringing the brand’s Eastern aesthetic to a global audience.
LFAX will continue to express its vision through design, telling stories of the composure of contemporary Chinese women on the international stage and allowing the aesthetics of Eastern negative space to resonate with audiences who share its sensibility.
Article edited by Pan Qi
Celebre Magazine Ambassador for China