Dance is the hidden language of the soul – kill them with kindness

July 8, 2020

In this ballet-inspired fashion-led shoot, the bride transformed from the innocent white swan to a mature, astute, and sentimental black swan, radiating the aroma of sophistication and shrewdness. The transformation did not make her less kind in soul, but instead she learns the power of silence and the beauty of expressing emotions and kindness through her hysterical dance moves and more subtle acts. A girl does not always have to be sweet and cute to be kind, one can be kind and be cool about it – that’s what she learns from her experience.

The transformation is expressed through two sets of concept and outfit. The first concept is driven by a lace off-shoulder white gown where the white swan breaks through her protective shells and dances happily and effortlessly by the sea and in the woods. The white calligraphed silk ribbon on the long wavy hair adds a touch of innocence and bliss to the first look. The makeup also highlights the natural facial features of the bride, with essences of peach and blush to create a younger and honeyed look. The hand-tied bouquet consisting of just pampas grass and no other floral materials symbolizes purity.

The second concept embraces a two-piece wardrobe consisting of a see-through lace crop top and a long layered skirt with lawyers of black and white overlapping, creating some shades of grey in between when the bride walks and dances in motion. The makeup draws focus on the glossy eyes to create sophistication and richness to the look, together with the statement and daring black lips. The flower installation on the ground creates an earth-tone rawness, consisting of fresh and dried flowers to create a contrast. This time, instead of just tying the silk ribbon on the hair or to the bouquet (without bows to add to the maturity), the black silk ribbon with the words “kill them with kindness” is also tied to the bride’s eyes to symbolise that emotions and kindness can be conveyed not through express words and anything glaringly visible, but through subtle gestures and conduct. The team wishes to express the art of subtlety in this concept, and the fact that a lot of times we are surrounded by kindness but we do not see it. Kindness is not just about doing something and telling others that you have done something nice, but is the art of genuinely wishing to influence others with your ability and spreading good deeds without asking for reciprocity. Something with more depth and understanding – this is what the grown black swan wishes to tell the world.

The shoot is accompanied by a short one-minute video, which captures the essence of the transformation and how the black swan fiercely and fearlessly expresses her kindness through beautiful, gentle, and yet powerful dance moves. The black swan also wants to tell the story that a girl does not have to have only one face and one character, when one grows wiser with more experience in life, she absorbs more of the world and developes multiple characters.

The shoot took place in a dilapidated minefield in Hong Kong, which is just by the sea. The team utilises the beautiful and raw natural landscapes of the cliffs, the sea, and the empty branches of the tall trees surrounding the minefield. In order to add a touch of fashion-forwardness and edginess to the shoot, the team also adds a huge white board with straight lines in the middle of the vast and empty minefield to create a contrast with the rest of the background.

Team (instagram handles and websites):-