ARCHED AND FALLEN BY JEAN

This series takes angels and demons as its core creative imagery. It borrows the visual symbolism of binary opposition to represent the coexistence of good and evil within human nature. By breaking away from simplistic black-and-white judgments, it explores the fluid nature of good and evil and the blurred boundaries of humanity.

In the colour palette, deep black and vivid red are chosen as the dominant tones for the devil’s image and are used extensively throughout the main collection. Black symbolises the desires, paranoia, and darkness hidden within the depths of human nature, while the intense red amplifies impulses, jealousy, selfishness, and other darker emotional aspects of humanity. Pure white represents the angel, appearing only in small details such as stitching and subtle embellishments rather than across large surfaces. It symbolises the quiet yet enduring kindness, gentleness, and tolerance that persist within people’s hearts. The colour proportions make the concept clear: evil is presented as the default background of human nature, while goodness is portrayed as a rare and precious light.

The core material is hard leather. Its cold, rigid texture perfectly complements the devil’s sharp and unforgiving temperament, while its thick, weighty quality reinforces the burden of humanity’s darker instincts. Leather’s strong structural properties allow for sharp, angular silhouettes that intensify the sense of confrontation and conflict. Small amounts of white fabric soften selected details, creating a contrast between softness and hardness against the rough texture of the leather. This symbolises the softness and fragility of goodwill, which can easily become concealed and overshadowed by overwhelming negative emotions.

The design concept rejects the traditional idea of a clear separation between angels and demons. The dominant black and red demon elements represent the negative instincts rooted within the human heart, while the small white angelic details symbolise the goodness hidden beneath the surface. These elements are intertwined on the same garments without clear dividing lines. This illustrates that human nature is never entirely good, nor entirely evil. There is no fixed boundary between the two; instead, it constantly shifts according to circumstances, emotions, and personal choices. Every person embodies both angel and demon. Human nature is a contradictory union of good and evil, existing in a constant state of tension, movement, and transformation.

Overall, the collection reflects on the complexity of human nature through a visual language of bold colour contrasts, opposing fabric textures, and the interweaving of angelic and demonic symbolism. Darkness may be the background of human nature, yet light remains eternal. Good and evil cannot be defined in absolute terms. When they coexist, they create the most authentic and complete expression of what it means to be human.