A Rather Late Notice

Dear Readers, I hope you all have a wonderful Chinese New Year. 2011 has been a very eventful year for me, and am excited to see what lies ahead. As some of you may have noticed, the number of posts that I have published recently has decreased dramatically. Some of you have asked me about this absence, and I am grateful for this concern. A large part of my disappearance was due to personal challenges (which I will not delve into here). Another concern I was facing was the concept of The Black Renaissance that I had been following for several months. I am now here to explain what has happened during this time, and the future of this blog.

When I first created The Black Renaissance, the purpose of the blog was to allow myself to put my thoughts into writing in a coherent manner as possible. Trying to find a “niche” for my blog, I decided to settle on a personal passion: fashion in China. Although I still immensely enjoy talking about this subject, I now realize that I do not want to be defined solely by the parameters of this subject, nor do I believe that a good blog is one that should be defined by a sole topic alone. Rather, I have come to understand that what has given this website its signature style is quality, lengthy writing that gives insight to an interesting world. Chinese fashion may be part of that world, but it is not everything. To give an analogy, a good fashion designer is not one who sticks entirely to primary elements such as color, silhouette or proportion. Rather, it is his or her ability to move comfortably across a range of ideas whilst retaining a signature style that transcends these basic components. Reading Imran Amed on The Business of Fashion’s 5th Anniversary a few weeks ago and how this well-respected website has evolved over time, I now see that change in this blog is not something I should be afraid of. Rather, change is necessary in the quest for excellence and defining my voice. 

In all honesty, I do not have a clear idea on the subjects that The Black Renaissance will be publishing in the coming months. However, I can promise you that whatever I choose to talk about will relate to a fascination to the world around me. Whether it is about fashion in China, a sake brewery in Canada, a fledgling designer who studied in the Netherlands, or the historical savoir-faire of porcelain, I will do my best to elucidate, educate and delight you with niche topics of interest. I hope you will join me in this mystery ride.

As always, I am thankful for all the support you have given me whether it is through emails, comments or in-person messages. These are blessings any individual would be lucky to have.

Best,

Daniel 

PS: A wonderful new theme is to come soon!