Madison Tae

Madison Tae

Collection

Bio

Madison Tae is a multidisciplinary artist and designer whose work is shaped by her connection to Korean heritage and an interest in how culture evolves, travels, and is carried across generations. Drawing from a background in fine art, she approaches fashion through texture, materiality, and meticulous handwork. Embroidery, beading, and surface embellishment are central to her practice as a way of preserving memory, honoring craft traditions passed down from her grandmother, and expressing the unseen labor embedded within making.

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장부 (jang-bu)

장부 (jang-bu) is the Korean word for ledger, a record of what is given, owed, and paid forward. A child of immigrants’ experience functions as a visual ledger, recording care that was never expected to be paid back. This collection focuses on unseen labor, the everyday acts of care through endurance that sustain families and underpin daily life. In this way, unseen labor is not something only inherited, but it teaches children to carry generosity forward without expectation, to contribute without spectacle, and to understand responsibility in a collectivist lens as opposed to individual. While this can be burdensome, it can also be grounding. It fosters discipline, humility, and ethical clarity. My thesis does not seek to romanticize struggle but to recognize how these values continue to influence the way we move through the world. Through hand-embroidery, textile painting by hand, and visible workwear elements, the same care is repeated. This work instead positions fashion as testimony, and acts as my recognition of my parents’ sacrifice.
Image: The upper portion and neckline draw from WWII era U.S. Army Air Forces heated flight suit liners, referencing aviation garments through shape and construction. For me, that detail is personal, a nod to my father, who always wanted to be a pilot, and a way of carrying forward that dream through my work. The dress also features chainstitched elastic trim and hand-basted, hand-ruched lightweight slub jersey, twisted and interlocked across the front to create texture and movement.
Image: This piece also features hand-painted Korean pine trees, completed over approximately 30 hours using textile paint. In Korean culture and folk iconography, pine trees symbolize longevity, resilience, integrity, and steadfastness, often appearing in traditional painting as a symbol of endurance through hardship because they remain green year-round, even in harsh winters.
Image: Hand-embroidered corset (over 240 hours of handwork). Symmetrically placed on each side are Korean tigers, symbols of strength, power, protection, and authority in Korean culture. Each tiger is embroidered using 5 different thread colors to create depth, shadow, and a natural orange tone. Surrounding them are Korean peonies, which represent prosperity, honor, and beauty.
Image: Morning glories, associated with enduring loyalty and steadfast commitment. This piece also includes omija berries, represented in clusters of french knots, a fruit with significance in Korean tradition but also with personal meaning, reminding me of drinking omija tea with my grandmother
Image: This look combines a structured silk faille corset, tailored wool trousers, and hand-dyed chiffon that wraps across the body in a closure inspired by the way an apron fastens. The wrap detail references workwear and everyday utility garments, bringing that sense of function into a more elevated context. By pairing structured tailoring with softer, fluid fabric, the look explores the balance between strength and softness while nodding to the labor and practicality that inspired its construction.
Image: This look is built on a structured ponte dress base, layered with hand-ruched and hand-basted lightweight slub jersey draped in green across the body. The jersey overlay is modular, allowing the piece to shift in shape and styling through wrapping and adjustment.
Image: Its construction draws from the wrapping methods of both Hanbok and the fastening of an apron, referencing garments tied to ritual, utility, and daily life. These layered wrap elements bring softness and movement to the structured base while continuing the collection’s dialogue between function, tradition, and dress.
Image: This look features tailored trousers made from deadstock imported Italian wool, paired with a jacket inspired by the outer shell of the F-2 WWII flight suit. Elements of the original garment are carried through in the pocket flap shape and the distinctive lapel form, here enlarged and reinterpreted within a tailored silhouette. The jacket’s asymmetrical closure references the way a Hanbok is wrapped and fastened, drawing from the ritual of dressing and the intentionality built into that act. By combining aviation references, traditional Korean dress construction, and classic tailoring, the look connects heritage, utility, and personal history through form