The Working Wardrobe: Patricia Zhou

A prolific ballet dancer from the age of 13, Patricia Zhou quickly became aware of the multiplicity of her identity and the challenges that accompany a singular creative path. “I didn’t really know that there were professional dancers – or that you could do artistic jobs,” Zhou says from her east London apartment. “My parents were first-generation Chinese immigrants in Canada before we settled in Michigan, so they very much expected me to have a stable profession. It was quite unimaginable to be able to do something else.”

Ballet was a serendipitous twist of fate for Zhou. Whether she was following her big sister to tap and ballet lessons as a child or being sent to Beijing Dance Academy by her mother in the hope that the intensity of the experience would put her off dance, she continued to be recognized by teachers for her natural ability. But it was not until a Russian ballerina, the principal dancer in a production of The Nutcracker, encouraged her to audition for the prestigious Kirov Academy of Washington, DC, that she was able to claim her creative path. Zhou graduated from Kirov with the President’s Award (an accolade for the highest-achieving student, both academically and artistically) and continued as a professional ballet dancer with the Royal Ballet in London and Staatsballett Berlin. “Being able to see a ballerina as the physical embodiment of perfection, beauty and discipline – I thought, wow that’s amazing. Ballet is fascinating because you are striving for a perfection that is actually quite impossible to achieve – yet it is so clear how you can get there.”

Despite her extensive and varied experience, it was not until the pandemic struck that Zhou decided to combine elements of her training into an evolved body of work. “Because I was alone a lot during lockdown, I had more time to experiment. I started choreographing and doing my own dance films, which has been really therapeutic. The second film I made, Orange Tree, was awarded by film festivals – plus, Rodarte provided the wardrobe for it, which was amazing. It was the first fashion label to collaborate on one of my projects, and having them believe in me really made me feel empowered to continue the work that I love to create. With my dance films, I end up bringing in Chinese influences that might not be super-apparent to people – but, for me, I’m finally able to bring both sides of myself into one thing that makes sense.”

Read on to discover how Zhou uses joyful outfits to break the ice and make maximum impact wherever life takes her…

“The Saint Laurent jumpsuit [that I wore for this shoot] is amazing; it made me feel like a glamorous woman on a yacht. And I also got to dance in it because it’s stretchy. If I were on vacation in France or Greece, I could totally see myself wearing this.”

“I don’t often wear over-the-knee boots, but these Khaite boots are phenomenal – and super-comfortable. The Versace blazer is really playful with the keyhole cutout, but it still feels really structured. We paired the look with The Attico’s pink ‘Friday’ bag, and it was kind of sexy with my legs out and the black tights. It felt like a modern take on a ‘powerful woman’, and I would wear that look every day if I could. I think you could wear that in any city and blend in, but also look really polished for a meeting – and then for dinner afterwards.”