Meet Lu Kaigang, the Chinese ‘village supermodel’ and internet star who can make fashionable dresses out of anything
- Known as Liuxianren online, he became famous on China’s TikTok for modelling outfits made from tarp, leaves and even an air-conditioner
- His videos have given him international attention, landing him a spot at London Fashion Week and a photo shoot in Hong Kong
On Douyin, China’s version of TikTok, it’s hard to miss the lithe, tan young man confidently strutting down dirt roads in his village like they’re his own personal catwalk.
In one video, he’s wearing an intricate dress made from colourful tarp. In another, he has an air-conditioner slung around his shoulder like a messenger bag.
Since May 2018, Lu Kaigang, who goes by Liuxianren online, has been dazzling viewers with his surprisingly fashionable pieces made from all manner of household objects – old curtains, dead leaves and even buckets.
He’s become a bona fide internet celebrity, with over 3 million followers on Douyin and another 200,000 on Weibo, China’s equivalent to Twitter. His new-found fame even earned him an invitation to the spring-summer 2020 edition of London Fashion Week.
But not too long ago, the 20-year-old model was a down-on-his-luck factory worker in Nanning, a city in China’s southwest.
