Culture is a word with many facets and one that we appreciate for its manifold meanings. It can refer to the ideas and social behaviour that binds a group of people together, the way in which we may feel akin to those in our friend groups or perhaps various interest clubs. However, when it comes to AAPI Month, the weight of culture and its traditional meaning feels ever more significant.
Made up of a diverse array of different backgrounds, the LANG Team feels lucky that we can celebrate different cultures everyday. Whether growing up completely immersed in our heritage, or developing an appreciation for it later on in life, we are thankful that we have had the opportunities to explore our cultures in our own ways.
As we celebrate AAPI Month this May, we took the time to ask our team about the various manners in which they have come to discover the intricacies of their own cultures. Whether it’s by learning about the significance of certain traditional dress styles, or by watching dramas cast against the landscape of their cultural home, we have grown to appreciate the fact that we can celebrate our customs in more ways than one.
Read on to find out more about how the LANG Team is reflecting this AAPI Month, as well as how we’re styling Asian-founded brands now and all through the year.
Kayla Wong, Founder & Creative Director
How do you stay in touch with your culture?
Kayla: I am lucky to be able to go back to my first home Hong Kong often, and being immersed in the city definitely is the best way to stay in touch with the culture. As some of the traditions start to fade away though, I think we try to keep them alive through what we do at LANG. Whether it be a theme for a photoshoot or a product idea inspired by Hong Kong – I think it is up to us to keep our culture alive.
What is the coolest thing you’ve learned about your culture?
Kayla: I think what is unique about the Cantonese culture is its gritty, witty spirit – people are sharp-tongued, quick with humor, and unafraid to speak their minds. It's a culture that meets life's challenges with boldness and a cheeky sense of resilience. I think that's really cool.
What is your favorite family dish? Tell us a favorite memory around this dish.
Kayla: I think my favorite family dinner is a Soy Sauce Pork Stew with Vermicelli and Tofu Knots. It is a dish that my great grandmother used to make and the recipe has been passed down to the rest of the ladies in the family. I chose this dish because it brings back a treasured and distinctive memory of being at my great grandmother's home with the whole family sitting at the roundtable. My grandma and aunties know that I love the tofu knots so they would always make sure I got extra!
What are you wearing and how are you styling it?
Kayla: I am wearing the Geel Julian Halter. It's a great Summer piece that you can dress up and down with. I wore it during the day for a work meeting and changed it up for a casual evening party look after.
Hannah Roquero, Stylist
How do you stay in touch with your culture?
Hannah: Through the community! Gathering together with family and friends are such big parts of the Filipino culture. Especially being older now, planning these intentional times brings us closer than ever.
What is the coolest thing you’ve learned about your culture?
Hannah: I’m currently doing research on traditional Filipina dress for a collaborative project my sister and I are working on, specifically the terno sleeve. It is commonly referred to as the "butterfly sleeve;" it is upright with a rounded top, and flat on the side that cuts straight across the bottom above the elbow like clipped butterfly wings.
These sleeves are a testament to the Philippines’ resilience and perseverance, as the origins of the sleeves date back to the Spanish colonial period when the clothing styles were influenced by European fashion — its history intertwined with the country’s struggles and triumphs. The terno sleeves are embedded with so much culture and history that continues to evolve with cultural pride.
What is your favorite family dish? Tell us a favorite memory around this dish.
Hannah: My favorite family dish is bistek (Filipino beef steak), it’s sautéed with onions, garlic, etc. This dish is associated with many memories of coming home — whether that was when I was younger and coming home from school or coming home to visit my parents now. It’s the ultimate sense of comfort for me!
What are you wearing and how are you styling it?
Hannah: I am wearing the SUSUMU Recycled Work Windbreaker and Shirt Pants. I cinched the waist of the jacket to create more shape to add a different silhouette — for an elevated, cute, and comfy look! I love all of the subtle details of these SUSUMU pieces.
Karen, Community Manager
How do you stay in touch with your culture?
Karen: I really love cooking. Although I didn't always appreciate it growing up in white America, home cooked Asian comfort food definitely feels like a kind of birthright now. Incorporating flavors I ate growing up as a kid and combining them with new flavors (currently fixated on a pesto laoganma pasta salad) helps me feel connected to my family and roots.
What is the coolest thing you’ve learned about your culture?
Karen: I'm dying to learn more about the personal histories of my family. I grew up feeling so disconnected and different from the rest of my extended family, as my parents emigrated to the US alone. When I would see my extended family as a kid, it felt confusing and uncomfortable rather than any sense of homecoming. I feel like so much crazy lore was lost during the Cultural Revolution – I'd love to spend some more time digging into where my family is from.
What is your favorite family dish? Tell us a favorite memory around this dish.
Karen: My favorite dish is so seasonal, but at the beginning of summer I always crave cold marinated salads. Wood ear, cucumber, napa cabbage, beancurd skin – pretty much anything pickled in garlic and vinegar. I have super fond memories of sitting on the kitchen floor eating the cold dishes straight out of the fridge with my best friend Olive after first moving to LA – it helped me feel at home here.
What are you wearing and how are you styling it?
Karen: I'm wearing the SUSUMU Recycled Baram Top as a top and skirt in grey and black. I am so in love with this piece that I had to get both colorways. It's functional, modular, and super comfy... everything I want for my wardrobe. I also love that I can pull a fast one with a mid day outfit change.
Zarah Cheng, Brand Director
How do you stay in touch with your culture?
Zarah: Growing up in Canada, I always felt a desperate need to separate myself from my culture in order to fit in. Chinese celebrations felt more like an obligation once a year during Lunar New Year and I felt no desire to learn my own language beyond what was spoken to me at home. When I moved to Hong Kong in my early 20s, it really opened up my eyes to a culture that I was completely missing out on. Since then, I’ve grown to really love Hong Kong and re-discovering so many things about the city my parents grew up in.
What is the coolest thing you’ve learned about your culture?
Zarah: For me, I think it’s been developing a newfound appreciation for Hong Kong architecture and vintage design elements. I love the metal shop gates in Hong Kong that have remained unchanged since the 1950s, the very specific shade of dark green of the trams, the red hanging lamps that stalls use in wet markets – honestly, the list goes on and on. And I know this is kind of eerie, but I really like stumbling across random shrines in the mountains during hikes as well.
What is your favorite family dish? Tell us a favorite memory around this dish.
Zarah: Stir Fried Shanghai Rice Cakes or Chao Nian Gao. My grandma was Shanghainese and she would always cook this for me and my sister when she was babysitting us. She immigrated to Canada as a single mother and brought all her children with her, so whenever I eat this dish, I always think about how strong my grandmother was and how hard she worked to provide for her family. She would cook the rice cakes with the perfect amount of chewiness and it’s such a humble dish, but it always felt like the most luxurious treat for me and my sister.
What are you wearing and how are you styling it?
Zarah: I’m wearing the Bonnie Clyde Lisp Sunglasses. I love the nostalgia of these rimless frames – I remember growing up with teen magazines and seeing all the celebrities in them wearing sunglasses like these. Even though they go with everything, I love styling mine with other throwback-inspired items like a halter top or a vintage graphic tee.
Jenny Kim, Social Media Manager
How do you stay in touch with your culture?
Jenny: I love watching Korean dramas, and even though they can often be over-dramatized, they give me a glimpse into life and culture in Korea. I’ve actually learned a lot about history by watching dramas based on historical events, and modern dramas give me insight into working culture, relationships with elders, and social dynamics. It’s honestly shocking sometimes to see how differently I grew up and think as a Korean American vs someone who is “Korean Korean.”
What is the coolest thing you’ve learned about your culture?
Jenny: I learned that each character in Korean names carries its own meaning. For example, my name, 지우 (Jiwoo), has 지 (Ji), meaning "knowledge," and 우 (Woo), meaning "friend." In Korean culture, it's customary for the grandparents on the dad's side to name the child, rather than the parents. I'm not sure if it's still the same today, but that's how it was for me.
What is your favorite family dish? Tell us a favorite memory around this dish.
Jenny: My favorite family dish has to be Buchu Jeon or chive pancakes. My mom used to make it for me and my brother all the time as an afterschool snack, so it’s very nostalgic. Sometimes she would add seafood to the pancake like shrimp or squid, and I think that's where my shrimp obsession started. It was always a fight between my brother and I over who could get the pieces with more seafood.
What are you wearing and how are you styling it?
Jenny: I’m wearing the Amaryllis Cropped Jacket from Find Me Now. I love the shape and details of the jacket, so I kept the base of my outfit simple with a black top and jeans combo.