The debut novel of F. Scott Fitzgerald, one of the leading English-language writers of the 20th century, “This Side of Paradise” (1920) is a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age tale detailing the complicated romantic entanglements of carefree Jazz Age youth.
Christine Chow, co-founder and creative director of Hong Kong sustainable fashion label Tove & Libra, tells Richard Lord how it changed her life.
I’ve always been an avid reader, but my parents were not. I was just trying to discover new books, either in the library or in the bookstore near where I grew up in Singapore – my family is from Hong Kong, and we moved there when I was eight.
I went through a period when I was trying to explore the classics, when I was a teenager, about 15 or 16; this was one of the first books of “real literature” that I found impactful.
Its contents resonated with me. At that age, you’re just starting to find yourself.
My parents had always wanted me to finish high school and study in the United States. I’d never visited the east coast, but I’d always thought that I wanted to be in New York. This book was all about being on the east coast, being at university and finding yourself.
For somebody in the middle of being a teenager, it felt very distant, but also achievable.
Why is this sustainable fashion marketplace founder rereading Shakespeare?
Why is this sustainable fashion marketplace founder rereading Shakespeare?
F. Scott Fitzgerald is a very poetic writer – I’d never read anything quite like that. He has a romantic viewpoint, and the language seems to sweep you up to another world.
The last line of the book really resonated with me: “I know myself … but that is all.” For him, it was the ending of his story; for me, it stayed with me for such a long time.
After that, I read all of Fitzgerald’s books. In my adulthood, I’ve been made aware that this is not the best of them, but it was the first of his books that I read, and it had such an effect on me.
When I get interested in something, I have to dive into all the connecting tangents. Through this book, I discovered art deco design and just loved it. It’s had a long-term influence on my creative interests and output.
I majored in studio art at college and went on to work in design, and art deco was definitely a reference I’d follow if I could.
For example, I used to freelance for Chocolat Moderne, a boutique chocolate brand in New York, and I did a bunch of art deco designs for the packaging and the actual chocolates, for a collection that is organised around Japanese flavours.
I think a lot of the concepts from art deco have stayed with me – your aesthetic doesn’t completely change. With Tove & Libra, there’s the idea of clear and geometric designs.
This book was written at a time when the way people dress was changing, when women started wearing pants, and people stopped wearing constricting clothing. I’ve always been drawn to the things being more streamlined. That idea of effortless chic is at the heart of our aesthetic now.