Think Pink with Alice Longyu Gao and PERICURA During NYFW

February 13, 2018
Art , Life , Popups

What better way to celebrate New York Fashion Week than to dress up and envelop yourself in pink, glitter and fur? According to Juliet (whose favorite color is pink), there is no better way! Upon entering this pink, pop-up paradise, created by Alice Longyu Gao, she declared that she “never wanted to leave.” Can you see why? photo credit Lumia Nocito

And yes, we had to dress up to match the space and celebrate all things PINK!

It was as if we were hanging out with Alice in wonderland – a wonderland, entitled PERICURA that the performance artist/DJ describes as being “deconstructed me.” Loving girly glam myself, I felt quite at home amongst the glitter wall and thought the room was simply delightful! Rolling around on the pink shag carpeting, it was clear that Juliet felt quite at home too. The sparkly room, inspired by beauty and instant photo booths from Japan, reminded us of our time exploring Harajuku, Japan an area and culture that Alice obviously subscribed to.

The stunning installation was not just a piece of art turned selfie station though. Special events and offerings included the reception party which we attended, DIY accessory making tutorials, celebrity hair styling by Kahh Spence from Kahh’s Shojo Manga Hair Station, 3D nail art by Mei Kawajiri of Mei’s Princess Nail Station, and Japaanese celebrity styling by Etsuna Otsuka of Etsuna’s Harajuku Apparel Atelier. For schedule and pricing information, click here.

Alice enchanted us so much and was genuinely obsessed with her new little friend, Juliet that we reached out for a quick interview with questions compiled from both my little one and me.

?s from Juliet

NAME and age? Alice Longyu Gao 23
HOW LONG DID THE ROOM TAKE TO SET UP? Over a month

IS PINK YOUR FAVORITE COLOR? I REALLY LIKE PINK. I LIKE A LOT OF COLORS. MY FAVORITE ALWAYS CHANGES.
DO YOU DRESS LIKE THAT EVERYDAY? (Juliet wishes she could dress like that everyday!) Yea!

?s from me

HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE IDEA AND THE NAME OF THE INSTALLATION? PERICURA demonstrates the universe in my head. PERICURA is my response to people—what made me to be this Alice, what I am into and inspired by. Most
importantly, I collect and transformed my knowledge and creativity via everything inside PERICURA. PERICURA as a whole, I did it for myself and it is for everybody to explore. The name and the concept of making PERICURA is #MeAnimated. I am inspired by the
traditional Japanese photo machine—“Purikura”. I see people’s obsession towards those overly beautified photo strips across different cultures as an inspiration. So, I want to offer people an opportunity to experience alternative aesthetics in real life. For people to experience
PERICURA, I collaborated with hair looks and nail designs with Miho Kawajiri and Kahh Spence.

YOU SAY THE ROOM IS THE DECONSTRUCTED VERSION OF YOU. IF YOU COULD DESCRIBE YOURSELF IN 3 WORDS, WHAT WOULD THEY BE? Tender, Wacky and True
HOW LONG HAVE YOU DRESSED HARAJUKU STYLE? WE LOVED SEEING ALL THE FASHIONS IN HARAJUKU, JAPAN. Harajuku is a spirit that’s been with me since middle school
WHAT DO YOU HOPE GUESTS WILL TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR ART INSTALLATION? It is important to be bold and brave. Life is not worthy living if you are not trying to discover yourself
WHAT’s YOUR NEXT BIG PROJECT? I am working on my song right now, hoping to debut in Japan soon