Sunho’s collection draws on her Korean heritage. She takes inspiration from the gat – a traditional men’s hat symbolising status – and intricate women’s hair braiding styles from the Joseon dynasty, Korea’s longest-standing royal era. She reimagines these historical forms using sinamay, a translucent, flexible material, to create gender-fluid pieces with a contemporary edge. The lightness of sinamay evokes the elegance of tradition, while Sunho’s designs show how cultural legacies can be reshaped for today, binding the past and present through innovative craftsmanship.Interpretative text by Patrick Campbell, BA (Hons) Culture, Criticism and Curation

A soft, flowing fusion of gache, braid, and gat, this piece reimagines tradition as a poetic “gat for women.”

This work is part of a series that goes beyond simply combining the traditional women’s wig (gache), braided hair, and the male headgear (gat). Instead, it brings these elements together into one flowing, unified form.It recalls a time in history when women often had to cover their faces in public, using outer garments or skirts to hide themselves. The structure of the gat, usually a symbol of masculinity, is softly reimagined here using the light, see-through material called sinamay.At the top of the piece, a crown-shaped braid gently wraps around, symbolising both feminine beauty and strength. This adds a sense of dignity and symbolism to the work.In this version, there is also a veil-like extension that covers the whole face. The semi-transparent quality of the material allows the outline of the face to appear softly, expressing both privacy and presence at the same time.More than just an accessory, this piece introduces a new idea – a “gat for women” – and offers a poetic and thoughtful reinterpretation of tradition, blending gender, history, and beauty in a modern way.

Women Gat 2

This piece highlights the scale of traditional braids, with sinamay and brass forming a bold, Korean-inspired contrast.

It might be the piece that most directly expresses the large size and the actual length of traditional braided hair. Additionally, by using sinamay, I aimed to evoke the feel of a “gat” (traditional Korean hat) in a new way. It might have been more interesting if more consideration had been given to the variety in decorations or shapes for the brooch pin. The dark brown colour seems to make the braided hair’s form stand out and has a strong contrast with the brass pin. The colours and mood seem to reflect Korean sentiments well.

Daenggi, where the Braid begins

Women Gat 1

This third piece reimagines the gat with open-faced transparency and crown-like braids, marking a quiet shift from concealment to confident presence.

This is the third piece in a series that brings together the traditional gache, braided hair, and gat into one flowing design. It remembers the past, when women often covered their faces in public, but reimagines the male gat using soft, semi-transparent sinamay.A crown-like braid wraps around the head, showing both feminine beauty and strength. This piece also includes the daenggi, a traditional straight braid, as part of the design.Unlike the first two pieces, this one does not cover the face. Instead, it leaves it open, showing a quiet but powerful shift—from hiding to showing, from tradition to change.More than just decoration, this is a new idea: a “gat for women”, rethinking old symbols in a modern and meaningful way.

Women Gat 3

A sculptural blend of gache and gat, this piece balances strength and softness to offer a modern take on Korean identity and beauty.

This piece is a sculptural fusion of the gache and gat, blending the gat’s structured brim with the flowing curves of the gache. Traditionally symbolising restraint and femininity, the two forms are reinterpreted to express a balance of strength and softness, function and ornament, and offer a modern perspective on identity and beauty rooted in Korean tradition.

The Gache and the Gat 1

A half-circle fusion of gat, gache, and braid, this piece offers a fluid, gender-inclusive reimagining of tradition.

This piece brings together symbols of both men and women by combining parts of the gat, gache, and braided hair. It creates a playful and creative expression of gender blending.While earlier works focused on connections between women, this one goes further by exploring the relationship between the masculine and feminine. On the woman’s side, there is a crown-like version of a female gat. On the man’s side, the face is left open, and a braid stretches across the back, starting from the woman and reaching toward the man. This design, shaped like a half-circle, shows the flowing link between the two.Importantly, the piece can be worn by anyone, no matter their hair length or style. It gives a fresh and open-minded view of traditional beauty, mixing old meanings with today’s freedom and creativity.

The Bridge 2

This work softly reinterprets the gache–gat fusion, with a circular braid framed by a sheer brim, balancing tradition and elegance.

This piece offers a modern reinterpretation of the gache–gat fusion, featuring braided hair arranged in a circle within the semi-transparent brim of the gat. Unlike the previous version, it emphasises subtlety and elegance, with the wearer’s face softly visible through the material. A binyeo pins the braid in place, adding a refined traditional touch. The work quietly balances tradition and innovation, creating a sculptural form that is both contemporary and culturally rooted.

The Gache and the Gat 2

This necklace reinterprets the flowing hair of a loosened gache, inspired by Scenery of Dano Day, into a light, wearable form that blends.

This necklace draws inspiration from Sin Yunbok’s “Scenary of Dano Day” and the traditional Korean gache, known for its dramatic volume and symbolic connection to beauty and social status. By capturing the natural, cascading form of hair when a gache is taken down, the piece offers a tactile interpretation of that elegance. Recreated using lightweight sinamay, it transforms the original heaviness into a refined, contemporary form—honouring the ornate dignity of historical Korean beauty while allowing for ease and wearability in modern life.

Unravelling the Gache

Beyond Gat : Daenggi, the Braid of Heritage

Men wearing Gat

Looking for fabrics that has similar vibe with Gat.

Material research 1 Looking for fabrics that has similar vibe with Gat

Material Research 1- Black Polyester Horsehair braid

Material research 1 Looking for fabrics that has similar vibe with Gat.Chose this material for my project.

Material Research 2 - Sinamay

Basic Hair style during Joseon Dynasty.  Braided into threee stramds and tied at the end with a daenggi ribbon.

Basic Hair style during Joseon Dynasty.Braided into threee stramds and tied at the end with a daenggi ribbon.

Daenggi Hair

Neatly combined back and tied or twisted into a bun at the back of the head. 

Neatly combined back and tied or twisted into a bun at the back of the head. Symbolising elegance and dignity.Adorned with hairpins or other ornaments.

Jjokmeori(Bun Hair)

They followed the custom of styling long hair up and used decorative accessories to make the hair look fuller or bigger, aiming to enhance beauty.

They followed the custom of styling long hair up and used decorative accessories to make the hair look fuller or bigger, aiming to enhance beauty.

Gache

Sunho’s collection draws on her Korean heritage. She takes inspiration from the gat – a traditional men’s hat symbolising status – and intricate women’s hair braiding styles from the Joseon dynasty, Korea’s longest-standing royal era. She reimagines these hi...

Sunho Jung

Final work

Research and process

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Beyond Gat : Daenggi, the Braid of Heritage

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