Story highlights
Ma Ke is the designer behind some of China's First lady's most famous looks
In a rare interview with CNN, Ma discusses why Chinese style differs from the West
Beijing
CNN
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Chinese couturier Ma Ke is a media-shy fashion-world maverick. She’s built two of China’s most influential designer brands and dresses the country’s first lady, Peng Liyuan – but doesn’t consider herself a designer.
Preferring a reclusive life in Zhuhai, a city on China’s southern coast that’s a world away from the country’s fashion hubs in Shanghai and Beijing, Ma never reads fashion magazines, shuns parties and rarely gives interviews.
For this exclusive, CNN wasn’t allowed to take photos at the opening of her new exhibition, nor did she want to supply a head shot.
“I don’t belong in fashion circles,” she says.
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China's first lady Peng Liyuan in outfits designed by Ma Ke
Ma may shun media attention, but her fashion success speaks volumes in itself.
Hugely influential in China’s fashion world for her brands Wuyong and Exception de Mixmind, the designer became a household name when China’s first lady wore one of her designs on her first official overseas trip in 2013.
The double-breasted dark navy trench coat she chose, paired with a light turquoise silk scarf, set Chinese social media alight. Peng’s unfussy, structured and elegant looks also received rave reviews abroad – Vanity Fair included her on its best-dressed list that year.
To many, Peng’s strong look broke the mold of the usually subdued fashion choices made by China’s first ladies of the past.
“It fits her well, as she is a soldier and she has a kind of assertiveness and toughness,” Ma tells CNN of the now-famous trench coat, the first time she’s confirmed which outfits she’s designed for Peng.
Ma has known China’s first lady since 2002, and through her designs, she says she wants to convey the inner confidence of modern Chinese women.
“You know sometimes clothing can come across aggressive when it’s too revealing and eye-catching and it’s the opposite of traditional Chinese aesthetics,” she says.
“Women don’t need to use clothing as a weapon if they’re confident in their character and cultivation.”
It’s ensured Peng, who was a famous folk singer before becoming first lady, is compared to fashion icons like Kate Middleton and Michelle Obama, both of whom have helped emerging designers become stars.
“My philosophy for the first lady’s designs is elegance, subtlety and demureness,” Ma adds.
SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images
President Obama made headlines with his final State of the Union address on Tuesday, January 12, but it was Michelle Obama who was trending on Facebook afterward. The first lady wore a marigold dress by designer Narciso Rodriguez that sold out online before her husband's speech was over. Here's a look at some of her other fashion choices.
NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images
RICK WILKING/Reuters/Landov
For the Inauguration Night balls in 2013, Obama wore a ruby-colored chiffon and velvet gown by Jason Wu, the same designer who made her 2009 inaugural dress. Known for her continuous support of emerging designers, the first lady essentially made the Taiwanese-born designer a household name in 2009 by wearing his dress.
Win McNamee/Getty Images
For Inauguration Day in 2013, the first lady mixed "high" and "low" fashion with a belt from J. Crew, a coat and dress by Thom Browne, Reed Krakoff boots and a necklace by Cathy Waterman, the White House said. After the festivities, the outfit and accessories were to go to the National Archives.
Larry Downing/Pool/Getty Images
Obama is known for her loyalty to designers and brands from a variety of price points, often wearing the same items on multiple occasions. At the president's swearing-in ceremony on January 20, 2013, she debuted a dress by Reed Krakoff, whose jackets and gowns she has worn before. Krakoff, the creative director of Coach, started his own label in 2010,
style blog Mrs. O noted.
Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images
Obama greeted the audience at the Kennedy Center Honors in December 2012 in a striking gold lamé gown by Michael Kors, fashion consultant Mikki Taylor noted.
Michael Reynolds/Pool/Getty Images)
At the final 2012 presidential debate in Boca Raton, Florida, Obama donned the same Thom Browne fog-gray dress with black lace overlay that she had worn at the Democratic National Convention, reworked this time with a black belt and a stone brooch, Taylor noted.
BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/GettyImages
The first lady worked the crowd at the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, in a Tracy Reese sheath with pink suede pumps by J. Crew, according to Taylor.
Kristoffer Tripplaar/Sipa Press via Getty Images
Obama wore a gown by Indian-American designer Naeem Khan at the White House Correspondents Dinner in April 2012 in Washington.
Alex Wong/Getty Images
Obama showed her right to bare arms in a Zac Posen sheath at a state dinner in honor of British Prime Minister David Cameron on March 14, 2012, at the White House.
Alex Wong/Getty Images
For a January 2012 lunch with Parklawn Elementary School students in Alexandria, Virginia, Obama wore an argyle sweater from J. Crew. The sweater has made multiple appearances since.
JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images
The first lady wore a Vera Wang gown to the Kennedy Center Honors at the Kennedy Center in Washington on December 4, 2011.
Chris Kleponis/Pool/Getty Images
The first lady worked her signature elegance at the Congressional Black Caucus' Phoenix Awards in 2011, pairing a floor length, a double-face paillette fishtail skirt by Michael Kors with a black top and a Peter Soronen corset belt, Taylor said.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
The first lady made an entrance at the 2011 Medal of Honor ceremony in a brocade dress by Barbara Tfank that she has worn on multiple occasions since, Taylor said.
Gary Fabianol/Pool/Getty Images
Obama highlighted Naeem Khan's talents in a scarlet-hued gown with matte crushed sequins and abstract wind-blown roses on scarlet tulle at the 2010 Kennedy Center Honors, according to Taylor.
TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images
At the annual Clinton Global Initiative in September 2010, the first lady played up her passion for prints with a Moschino Cheap & Chic multipatterned chemise that featured hothouse flowers on top and a digital print on the bottom, Taylor noted.
MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images
Obama transitioned from a daytime meeting with Mexico's first lady to an awards ceremony on February 25, 2010,
wearing the same Jason Wu dress, according to the style blog Mrs. O.
MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images
Obama has worn
this Target dress on multiple occasions since being photographed in it as she stepped off Air Force One with daughter Sasha on August 15, 2009, according to the Mrs. O blog.
JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images
Obama has been known to wear dresses from mass retailer Talbots and accessorize them with signature pieces such as this sweater from Dear Cashmere and a belt by Sonia Rykiel, worn in July 2009,
according to Mrs. O.
STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images
Public consensus approved of the ball gown Obama wore on inauguration night in 2009. The dress solidified the first lady's reputation as having a keen eye for emerging talent.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
And the public's obsession with Obama's sartorial choices began with the Narciso Rodriguez sheath she wore when her family took the stage at Chicago's Grant Park after her husband's victory in the 2008 presidential election. Some lauded the choice as an eye-catching statement; others called it an eyesore.
It’s a philosophy that Ma has drawn from her deep appreciation of traditional Chinese design.
While many regard the form-fitting cheongsam or qipao as epitomizing Chinese style, Ma, who reads Chinese classics extensively, says the opposite is true.
courtesy Shanghai Tang
From its turn as a 1920s feminist statement to modern incarnations, the Hong Kong Museum of History's "
A Century of Fashion: Hong Kong Cheongsam Story" celebrates the iconic dress. This contemporary version (not featured in the exhibit) is from Hong Kong fashion brand Shanghai Tang.
Hiufu Wong/CNN
Founded in 1966 in Hong Kong, Linva Tailor has watched the rise and fall of the cheongsam's popularity. "Cheongsam becomes trendy every decade or two in a cycle," says owner Leung Ching-wah.
courtesy Shanghai Tang
Founded in Hong Kong in 1994, Shanghai Tang has been a pioneer in transforming the cheongsam into a modern ready-to-wear dress. Last year's fall/winter collection incorporated sleek leather in place of traditional silk.
Hong Kong Museum of History/Courtesy of Ms Louisa Chan
The Hong Kong Museum of History's cheongsam exhibit explains the evolution of the iconic and beloved Chinese dress through 130 gorgeous displays.
Hong Kong Film Archive/Hong Kong Museum of History
Worn by Hong Kong actress Linda Lin Dai, four-time Best Actress award winner at the Asia Film Festival, this cheongsam exhibits a popular style in the 1950s, with an extremely narrow hem. A zip sewn into the top of the side slit on the left side makes it more convenient for the wearer to get in and out of a car.
Courtesy of Mrs Loletta Chu-Lo
This cheongsam was made by master Mong Kar-mo and worn by Loletta Chu-Lo when she won the 1977 Miss Hong Kong Pageant. Master Mong currently teaches a class on how to make cheongsam at the Hong Kong YMCA.
Hiufu Wong/CNN
The main elements of the dress's original silhouette -- high collar, flower buttons on the placket -- make it easy to incorporate into new designs.
Hiufu Wong/CNN
At Hong Kong cheongsam shops, customers choose a style off the rack before deciding on details such as flower buttons on the placket, sleeve length and slit depth.
Hiufu Wong/CNN
Master tailor Leung Ching-wah (here with wife Joana Fung) suggests longer sleeves for customers conscious of their arms and a higher waistline for those who wish to hide their stomachs.
MN Chan/Getty Images
Per tradition, Miss Hong Kong candidates wear cheongsam during the award ceremony, as shown here by the winner and runners-up in 2006.
“In Western values, women are beautiful if they are sexy. Chinese design is more concealing.”
“Like the traditional Chinese ink painting, the blank space between fabric and skin is where the beauty resides,” she says.
Ma also draws on tradition for her couture designs for her Wuyong brand, employing techniques such as loom weaving, hand-sewing and natural coloring.
Her unusual textures, architectural shapes and earthy colors led to her becoming the first Chinese designer to be invited by one of high fashion’s most respected bodies, Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, to show at Paris Haute Couture week in 2008.
Handout/Getty Images Europe
Peng Liyuan meets German Chancellor Angela Merkel wearing one of Ma Ke's designers on March 28, 2014.
It’s a theme she’s also exploring further with her latest venture, an exhibition she has curated and installed in her Beijing Wuyong showroom called “In search of the clothes with the best stories.”
Ma says she wants to highlight traditional Chinese design with her exhibition, and support the people who produce handcrafted products in China’s rural areas.
“I went to the rural areas many times to study traditional clothes making techniques and I was impressed. I decided to help rejuvenate the traditional craftsmanship,” she says.
“Clothes crafted with care and love last longer,” she adds. “If we don’t seize the time, we’ll lose lots of previous cultural heritage.”
“In search of the clothes with the best stories” runs from October 29, 2016 to April 15, 2017 at Wuyong Space, 77 Meishuguan Back St, Dongcheng District, Beijing, China.