Shushu Chen

Collection

The Divinity of Sentient Nature

There was a tough teenage time years ago, I muddled every day, feeling lonely, pessimistic, depressed, anxious, and powerless. At that point, I found a romantic way of meditation: sitting near Walden Pond, and reading Walden written by Henry David Thoreau. Thoreau is an American naturalist and philosopher who lived in the doctrines of transcendentalism and lived at Walden Pond alone for two years. He “taught” me about “sucking out all the marrow of life” which means finding the essence of life and living meaningfully by returning back to a natural and simple life. Simultaneously, I find transcendentalism is somehow similar to Taoism, a Chinese ancient traditional religion, which believes in certain philosophical thoughts that the “Tao” is the essence of all things in the universe and highlights the combination of humans with nature.

Transcendentalism and Daoism, as critical philosophical ideas in the United States and China, somehow both believe in the equality of all sentient beings, insist on cultivating the harmonious relationship between human beings and nature, emphasizing the importance of being back to nature, liberating the human mind, and find our inner peace. Sometimes we need to jump out of the chaotic world, not be trapped by all the notions, restrictions, standards, and desires, and enlarge our life width in the limited length.

Bio

Shushu Chn is a Chinese, NYC- based fashion designer whose designs are imbued with traditional Chinese aesthetics, philosophical ideas, and sentient nature. Fashion to her is a silent but powerful aesthetic creation that helps to express sensibility. She aims to provide people with a sense of belonging in the chaotic world and celebrate the divinity of all sentient beings and nature.