Thomas Chen, the designer of Emanuel, sits down with MOCA to discuss his background and career in fashion. He recounts how the visual language of fashion helped him assimilate into American culture after immigrating to the U.S. with his family at the age of 11. He then discusses his fashion philosophy, particularly the unconscious duality in his thinking that is reflected in his design. The two pieces he selected for the exhibit represent his signature style. The reversible coat manifests this duality, and the Albers pocket shirt is representative of his play with graphic elements. Because everyone wears clothes and can have an opinion about fashion, he believes that fashion is a relatable art form and can be a connector across different cultural backgrounds. He ends the interview with a discussion of identity, sharing that living and working in Beijing for a year was a way of finding his Chinese roots. He realized from that experience that he did not really have a choice in being Chinese, but being American was a choice, and to him, that meant that New York was the place he wanted to come back to.