Foam of Desire Mosebetsi oa Mantlha: Moralo oa Liaparo by Kaiqi Zhang

Foam of Desire Mosebetsi oa Mantlha: Moralo oa Liaparo by Kaiqi Zhang is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award in Moralo wa Diaparo tsa Setso le Nalane Competition Category.

BoronseMoralo wa Diaparo tsa Setso· 2026

Foam of Desire Mosebetsi oa Mantlha: Moralo oa Liaparo

by Kaiqi Zhang

Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award Winner in Moralo wa Diaparo tsa Setso Category

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Colors

The Design

About Foam of Desire Mosebetsi oa Mantlha: Moralo oa Liaparo

Mongolo oa Buka: E thehiloeng ho nyatso ea litakatso le lefeela tse hlalosang ho reka ha mehleng ena ea kajeno, sengoathoana sena se sebelisa moralo oa seaparo ho hlahloba ho aroloa ho phelang ka har'a leruo la lintho tse bonahalang. E nahana hape ka liaparo tsa mahosana tsa lekholo la leshome le metso e supileng la lilemo, e bopa lesela le ka bopjoang ka mokhoa o motle o etsisang 'mele o jeoeng ke litakatso. Mefuta-futa ea 'mala o boputsoa ba turquoise, e thulanang le pinki e monate le boololo bo botala bo serolana bo kulang, e theha phello e khahlehang ka holim'a feela empa e tšosang haholo ka botebo. Khatello ena e mema babohi ho nahanisisa ka tlhaho ea litakatso.

The Recognition

About the Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award

Foam of Desire Mosebetsi oa Mantlha: Moralo oa Liaparo ke mohapi oa Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award, kananelo e hlomphehang haholo e fuoang meralo e ikhethang e tsejoang ka boqapi, bohlale ba ho qapa le bohlale. Bahapi ba Boronse ke lintho tse nang le bokhoni ka ho felletseng le boqapi bo hlollang tse tiisang boiphihlelo bo bongata, mohopolo le bokhoni ba ho iphumana ba baqapi ba tsona. Foam of Desire Mosebetsi oa Mantlha: Moralo oa Liaparo e lebelletsoe ho ba ntho e hlomphuoang haholo, e ratoang le e ratehang, e nang le boprofeshenale bo bonahalang le mehopolo e mecha. Moralo ona o hapileng Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award o kenyelletsa mekhoa e metle ka ho fetesisa bonong, mahlaleng, moralong le theknolojing mme o hlahella ka ho tsepamisa maikutlo lintlheng tse nyenyane. Foam of Desire Mosebetsi oa Mantlha: Moralo oa Liaparo e kutloisisa litlhoko hantle, e ama litakatso, e hapa maikutlo mme e tsosa takatso ea ho tseba.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Inspired by Epicure Mammon from The Alchemist, this piece reimagines European aristocratic attire from the 17th century to question the concept of decadent luxury. Using a specially engineered moldable fabric, the garment swells into a bloated silhouette reminiscent of bubbles, evoking bodies consumed by desires. Vivid turquoise blue and pink create a visual allure that is both jarring and seductive, with a sugary quality that prompts viewers to reflect on overconsumption and inner emptiness.
Dimensions & Packaging: approximately 175 centimeters high, 140 centimeters wide and 80 centimeters deep
Tags: Clothing Design, Materializing Desires, Material Experimentation, Visual Metaphor, Irregular Forms, Visual Tension
Production Technology: A specially engineered moldable fabric, adhesive when wet, allows for intuitive hand sculpting of volumetric forms. By laminating foam into the fabric and injecting air, this approach creates irregular organic bubbles with a unique hybrid texture, which is both translucent and semi rigid. When illuminated, these forms look like a second skin, materializing the concept of internal collapse festering beneath a surface of opulence.
Design Challenge: The key challenge was to lead viewers from visual seduction to psychological unease, and the answer lay in color use. A rational turquoise blue base is invaded by lush pink accents that embody swelling desires, while traces of sickly yellowish green underneath hint at decay and exposure. The contrast between high saturation and low brightness, paired with matte and pearly finishes, creates a tension between a sweet appearance and hidden unease, turning initial allure into disquieting reflection.
Research: This work critiques the consumerist era by framing its core maladies: swelling desires and inner voids. Using the structure of seventeenth century aristocratic attire, the piece presents bloated, bubble like forms that symbolize a body consumed by insatiable desires. Jarring color combinations then guide viewers from visual seduction to psychological disquiet, ultimately revealing the spiritual barrenness hidden behind a luxurious facade.
Inspiration: This piece takes its cue from Epicure Mammon, an embodiment of insatiable desires in the play The Alchemist. It deconstructs the symbolic language of seventeenth century aristocratic attire to pose a question about beauty in excess. Each element becomes a visual narrative around the body, speaking of desires that swell, promises that prove false, and the inescapable reality of decay.
Project Duration: The project commenced in October 2023 in London, United Kingdom. The initial toile was completed in December 2023, and the project concluded in March 2024 with the completion of the final garment.
Operation Flow: This work redefines clothing from a mere covering for the body into an aggressive entity that devours it. The doublet, with its dramatically exaggerated chest and shoulders, achieves a swollen, voluptuous contour that makes inner desires visibly manifest in the flesh. The asymmetrically reshaped ruff collar, when illuminated, casts an encircling shadow, mirroring the confinement in a prison built from greed and vanity.
Team Members: Kaiqi Zhang