On a dress, the ridgeline texture of Taiwan’s “sacred mountain that protects the nation” subtly emerges. A vortex at the chest appears somewhere between a rose and the eye of a typhoon. The silhouette of a Taiwan blue magpie merges with the lines of ocean waves… These designs, which weave Taiwan’s natural imagery into clothing with moments of wit, surprise, and quiet delight, come from fashion brand WANGLILING and its 2026 new collection, “Island Myriad.”
Rooted in Taiwan for more than a decade, WANGLILING designer Wang Li Ling has long taken elements of nature as the axis of her creative practice. Through material experimentation, she explores the possibilities of fabric, blending cultural symbols with technological performance to form the brand’s distinctive design language. This season, she presented her AW26 collection at Taipei Fashion Week in the form of a Presentation. It is an extension of her natural narratives, as well as a moment of transformation and innovation — moving from past works that emphasized concept and technique toward an attempt that is closer to the market.
Wang Li Ling, designer of the brand WANGLILING.
Building a Distinctive Brand Vocabulary Through Material Experimentation and Cultural Soul
Looking back on Wang Li Ling’s path in fashion, “materials” have always exerted a deep pull. While studying fashion design at Shih Chien University, she began experimenting with the integration of technological elements into design. “During university, I wanted to enjoy nightlife, so on a whim I installed an LED mirror onto a bag, allowing me to check my appearance at any time.” A leisure-inspired idea sparked her curiosity about light and also made her realize that clothing could serve as a medium for solving problems. For her graduation project, she even created inflatable wearable devices designed for hiking and cycling safety, combining lighting and protective functions. For Wang, clothing is not only a visual presentation, but also something that can respond to reality and solve problems.
Her exploration of light and materials deepened further after she went on to study at Central Saint Martins in London. She shifted from fashion design to Textile Futures, speculating on the possible relationships between materials and human beings. “What I learned most there was logic and the ability to build discourse. It gave me a clearer structure and line of thought when running a brand.” What also changed her during that period was a renewed understanding of “identity.” On the first day of language school, after asking the whole class to introduce themselves, the teacher posed a question: “Why do students from the East all need to choose an English name?” The question pierced Wang’s heart like a needle. Living abroad, she began to reflect on where she came from and what her own culture truly was. From then on, technology and materials became the structure and framework of her clothing, while culture became its foundation and soul. The intersection of the two gradually shaped her unique design vocabulary.
“Before going to the UK, my work was almost entirely about ‘technology.’ After experiencing that impact, I began to incorporate ‘culture’ into my designs.”
— Designer Wang Li Ling
Inside Wang Li Ling’s brand studio and showroom, one can see her strong sense of play and experimental spirit toward materials everywhere.
Wang Li Ling officially founded her namesake brand WANGLILING in 2016, launching her first collection, “Observing Water.” “At the time, I thought of rainy London. There was always a puddle outside my home, and when cars drove past, oil and water mixed together, creating a rainbow-like sheen.” That puddle became her inspiration, leading her to develop fabrics with rainbow colors reminiscent of chakras. Since then, every collection has carried a thread connected to the inner self: from water, mist, and snow within the same water element, to the energy series of wind, electricity, and fire. In recent years, she has built her creative practice around “trees,” while this season’s “Island Myriad” takes the entire island of Taiwan as its central theme. It maintains the continuity of her natural genealogy while also marking a breakthrough season for WANGLILING in color, material, and presentation format.
Wang Li Ling excels at observing everyday life and cultural landscapes, combining the application of “light” and “materials” to develop futuristic, technology-inflected fabrics and garment structures.
Revealing “Island Myriad” Through Imagery and Color: Weaving Mountains, Seas, Flowers, and Birds Into Clothing
For this season’s “Island Myriad” collection, Wang Li Ling expands her perspective to a more macroscopic level, gazing anew at Taiwan’s mountains, rivers, and landscapes from an aerial viewpoint. Mountain ridgelines, coastal contours, and blooming flowers — scenes that can only be fully taken in from above — are transformed this season into flowing lines, undulating silhouettes, and color imagery, inviting audiences to rediscover this land through clothing.
“I like placing different things together; that’s what makes the result interesting. In the past, the ‘Light’ collection combined the universe with dragons. This time, I wanted to use the perspective of a bird flying through the sky and looking down at Taiwan, creating a landscape different from what we see from the ground.”
— Designer Wang Li Ling
WANGLILING’s latest works construct the “Island Myriad” collection through imagery drawn from Taiwan’s mountains and rivers, as well as endemic plants and animals, transforming natural forms into wearable structures. Wang especially shares that she developed gowns with undulating contours inspired by high mountain ridgelines. One piece responds to the phrase “the sacred mountain that protects the nation,” commonly used in Taiwan’s everyday language, using luminous lines to bring out the contours. A garment inspired by the Taiwan blue magpie, meanwhile, extends through interwoven panels of different blue fabrics, forming the shape of a bird’s beak at the long sleeves with imagination and playfulness.
Taking one of the show’s most beloved pieces, inspired by the Taiwan blue magpie, as an example, Wang overlaps the bird’s lines with ocean-wave textures. At first glance, the fabric appears like a flowing water surface; yet when viewed from another angle, the silhouette and facial features of the blue magpie emerge — from the eye and chin to, in the suit version, a specially added red detail symbolizing the beak. This creates a playful act of looking.
Her fabric choices are equally considered. “The blue magpie and the sea are both blue, so I selected denim and another fabric close to the color of ocean waves.” The denim was specifically chosen for its metallic-thread texture, with fine shimmering sequins woven throughout, like the subtle glimmer of waves in motion.
Looking closely at WANGLILING’s new works, one can see orchids, Taiwan blue magpies, mountain ranges, and other imagery interpreted through highly imaginative design. The overall styling vocabulary is further extended through theatrical millinery by hat designer Winnie Lin, allowing the garments to form more complete characters and silhouettes in space. For example, the Taiwan blue magpie look uses a red hat to symbolize the bird’s beak. （Photography by Mai Hsien-Yun for the upper-row images; lower image courtesy of WANGLILING.)
The collection also draws inspiration from Taiwan’s diverse flower species and cultivation techniques, carefully translating orchids, lilies, roses, and more. While experimenting with the application of three-dimensional floral forms on garments, Wang realized that the flower shapes began to resemble typhoons. In particular, after flattening the volume of the petals, the spiral structure came closer to the typhoon paths seen on weather maps. She adjusted the design accordingly, creating compositions on clothing that resemble twin typhoons side by side. The transformation of roses into typhoons also unexpectedly aligns with the resilience of Taiwan as an island — a land long battered by natural disasters, yet still possessing the vitality to bloom again like flowers.
The spiral structures applied to both men’s tailoring and womenswear this season were inspired by roses and typhoons. Their production required overcoming numerous technical challenges, while also unexpectedly echoing the resilience of Taiwan as an island. Photo courtesy of WANGLILING.
Wang Li Ling has always insisted on challenging herself through materials. This season, “light” remains the core of that breakthrough, though its expression has become more internalized. In recent years, she has continued to use fabric transformation to express a sense of luminosity. This time, she injected reflective effects into the lines of pieces that are both flowers and typhoons, though the production process involved many challenges.
“Reflective material is hard, while fabric is soft. With so many pattern pieces and a design that keeps rotating, sewing the two together was not easy. We failed many times along the way — I think the seamstresses were probably almost fed up!” she says with a laugh.
In addition, she developed a colored printed reflective material, which brings out the many colors of flowers under flash photography, making the overall visual effect stronger and richer while echoing the concept of the island’s diverse landscapes.
Another notable transformation lies in the diversity of color. This season can be described as the most color-rich in the brand’s history. WANGLILING, which in the past primarily used darker tones, has turned toward a strategic experiment. Wang avoids pastel or overly soft colors, instead drawing from the deep greens of forests, the indigo blues of the ocean, and the vivid yellows and reds of flowers. By choosing highly saturated primary tones, she both responds to nature and maintains the brand’s usual sense of composure, creating a refreshing visual impression.
“I wanted to see, while preserving the brand’s personality, whether different colors could be accepted by our existing customers — and even attract new ones.”
— Designer Wang Li Ling
The strategic use of varied and vibrant colors marks one of WANGLILING’s major new experiments this season.
Photo courtesy of WANGLILING.
Shaping a Sensory Island Scene Through a Multilayered Presentation
Having participated in Taipei Fashion Week multiple times, Wang Li Ling departed from her previous runway formats this season and chose the newly promoted Presentation format for 2026. On the day of the exhibition, she personally guided visitors through the works, introducing each garment through questions and conversations with attendees. The atmosphere on site was relaxed and lively. “This relatively static format makes it easier to bring us closer to audiences and consumers,” Wang analyzes.
From clothing design to exhibition planning, WANGLILING also introduced AI assistance for the first time. The team first photographed the garments, then used AI to generate images of the clothes on real people. These were played in the exhibition space as videos simulating models walking in the collection. “We hoped that through video support, people could still see what the garments look like when worn.”
This also marked her first collaboration with the display technologies of AUO and Darwin Precisions, as well as low-energy e-paper from Green Innovation Technology. Together, they transformed natural light and shadow into a refined, layered visual experience, using technology to delicately present the garments’ dynamic visuals and create an illusionary experience where the virtual and the real overlap.
For Taipei Fashion Week AW26, the brand presented in a Presentation format, bringing it closer to audiences and consumers. In addition to garment displays, the exhibition included art landscape installations, making visitors feel as though they had entered an island in full bloom. AI technology and precision displays were also introduced to delicately present the garments’ dynamic visuals.
Photo courtesy of WANGLILING.
Designer Wang Li Ling personally guided visitors on the day of the exhibition, introducing each garment through exchanges with attendees. The atmosphere was relaxed and lively.
Photo courtesy of WANGLILING.
Speaking of important collaborators behind the scenes, Wang gives special credit to longtime video director Jerry Chang and millinery designer Winnie Lin. Taking the orchid piece as an example, Winnie had prepared a blue hat in advance. “Only after seeing the garment at the exhibition did we realize the colors matched perfectly — she was shocked too.” Jerry’s visuals, meanwhile, always capture Wang’s thoughts and ideas. This time, through music and imagery, he constructed a fluid, time-based narrative. These unspoken forms of creative chemistry made the overall presentation feel even more natural and complete.
Years of running the brand have made Wang deeply aware of the importance of interacting with customers. She specifically set up a hands-on experience area within the exhibition, where participants could receive a small gift from Cha Tzu Tang after completing the activity. The fragrance of Taiwan’s native Taiwan incense cedar leaves extended the theme of “Island Myriad.” Children enjoyed the experience immensely, while adults were able to browse the garment details more attentively, creating more room for real exchange.
Wang Li Ling also set up a hands-on interactive area within the exhibition, combining sensory experience with opportunities for genuine exchange and engagement. Photography by Mai Hsien-Yun.
All of these details allowed fashion week to become a site of two-way dialogue and feedback. Wang is accustomed to asking visitors on site which pieces they like best, and the results surprised her somewhat. “I originally expected the orchid or rose pieces to be the favorites, but in the end, the blue magpie and the lily gown were the most popular.” These conversations allow her to absorb suggestions and adjust details, helping ideas truly land and become capital that supports the brand’s long-term operation.
Wang Li Ling says that through face-to-face interaction with viewers and increased social sharing, the exhibition also received many messages from customers who were unable to attend in person but hoped to make appointments to view the garments at the brand showroom. The response exceeded expectations and also confirmed the success of her first attempt at using a broader color palette. Photography by Mai Hsien-Yun for the upper image; lower image courtesy of WANGLILING.
Beyond Being Seen: Letting Design Truly Enter the Market
Having cultivated the Taiwanese fashion market for more than a decade, Wang Li Ling now approaches the brand with the same rational, forward-thinking mindset she has always carried. Her understanding of brand positioning has shifted from an earlier desire to be seen toward a greater emphasis on actual market response. From participating in international fashion weeks in the early days to refocusing on Taiwan after the pandemic, she gradually realized that establishing a stable customer base and sales structure is far more important than a single moment of marketing exposure.
This awareness is also reflected in the development of the brand’s product lines. “For example, the previously released Chinese zodiac series received a lot of positive feedback after launch. In response to customer demand, we extended it into baby bodysuits, children’s clothing, and red styles suitable for Lunar New Year. Many families bought them for family portraits, and they remain one of our signature products today.” Starting from a creative concept, then listening to the market to find an entry point, allows the design language to continue being transmitted through daily life.
“Exposure is an important starting point, but whether a brand can go far ultimately comes back to the support of actual sales.”
— Designer Wang Li Ling
In recent years, Wang has also built deeper connections with customers through her physical space and regular workshops. “Beyond daily operations, we also need fixed presentations so they can look forward to seeing new designs.” The presence of Taipei Fashion Week thus becomes an important annual point of gathering, exchange, and witnessing the brand’s continued evolution. She also hopes that Taipei Fashion Week can more actively strengthen the connection between designers, the market, and retail channels in the future, giving brands more opportunities to access sales networks and generate actual orders, ultimately creating a healthier cycle for the industry as a whole.
This pragmatic attitude does not prevent Wang from preserving her original passion for design. “Every year, customers worry about what I’m going to do next year. They feel this year was even more impressive, so what am I going to do next?” Behind the half-joking tone lies someone accustomed to being anticipated, and also accustomed to constantly challenging herself.
From water to mist, from wind to fire, from trees to the entire island, Wang Li Ling has gradually carried out her own logic and design vocabulary. She is no longer the young woman once troubled by the question of taking an English name. Her design is called WANGLILING.
▐ Interview & Text / Tsaishan Hung
▐ Editor & Coordination / Irene Lin
▐ Interview Photography / Seeyu Chen
About the Brand
WANGLILING
WANGLILING excels at using technological materials, observing various natural forms, and playfully interweaving the effects of light and shadow. The brand extends tangible things into intangible realms, and depicts intangible things through tangible forms, constructing a unique macrocosm that transforms into an elegant and restrained fusion of Eastern and Western cultures.
About the Designer
Wang Li Ling
From studying fashion design at Shih Chien University to pursuing Textile Futures at Central Saint Martins in London, Wang Li Ling has devoted herself to researching technological materials. Like a magician of clothing, she uses avant-garde materials and mixed media to interpret the Eastern philosophy of “the unity of heaven, earth, and humanity, in harmony with the four seasons of nature.” Her namesake brand WANGLILING was founded in 2016. With bold innovation and a fearless forward-looking vision toward the future, she has attracted considerable attention in the fashion world.
▐ Brand Website: https://www.wangliling.fashion/
▐ Contact: 33@wangliling.fashion