Weddings > Love & Marriage > Bridal Styles > The Groom
Written by KELLI BRAM?
The groom wore an embroidered suit, with tattoos visible on his arms, underneath. Shoes: Converse Chuck Taylors.
What a mesmerizing and heartwarming wedding story! Christine Ko and Alan Yang’s L.A. nuptials are a celebration of their love and admiration for pop culture, art, and fashion. Staged at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and featured here as a New York Times Style Magazine exclusive, the wedding is a liberal mix of personal quirks, memorable elements, and an outstanding display of highly curated looks.
The couple’s coming together finally happened after meeting on the set of a Netflix megahit series in 2016; the blissful pair exudes massive chemistry and is madly in love. Cohen Goldstein’s stunning images capture the joy, excitement, and flavor of the event.
When Ko and Yang first met two years ago as a couple on Crazy Rich Asians, they weren’t an immediate match. They had, however, several near-misses over time with Yang as a guest star on TV shows that Ko appeared in. The two first came together when they started chatting on Twitter, and by that time, Yang had started giving credit to the witty writer over social media. They hadn’t imagined exchanging vows at that time, but they’d occasionally meditate on South Sea-themed ideas.
Given the groom’s slight obsession with tattoo art, the most vivid fractions of their wedding concept revolved around South Sea myths and transmutations in tattoo art. With an affinity for the island’s culture, the couple launched into action and engagement, looking for a South Seas tattoo convention to uncover the themes racing through their brains. “Over the course of a couple years, it became obvious to us that what really ticks us off is this classic Shangri-La concept that the South Seas is a paradise, and in fact, when you really drill down and study the history and the myths, it’s kind of the opposite,” Yang remarked.
As the planning continued, an entertainer was enlisted to bring the selection of sophisticated robots, light and choreographed installation pieces, and sculptural animations, enhancing the aesthetic via mechanics. The bride personalized her dress as seen in the time of magazine fashion illustrations – specifically, an era when California living was at its finest. The original illustration was by artist Richard Powers.
“In a lot of ways, the illustration and the design were very much inspired by Christine’s grandmothers, who are immigrants from China,” Powers told The New York Times. “That based Taiwanese culture, the beginning of it, into the heritage which is so important to Christine today.”
The groom wore an embroidered suit, rather than a tux, which is the norm for dazzling weddings. He was wearing Converse Chuck Taylors on his feet, which was a significant overture to the budget-friendly, laid-back, and down-to-earth couple that would tie the knot.
Yang said, “The fun thing about style in general, and about fashion in particular, is figuring out ways to use it to smuggle in unexpected things. In this case it was probably working with a designer on this idea that it would start poised: You have the tuxedo and the flowers and all of that, but what’s dangling off the back (suit) would be this storybook jungle.”
Wedding Trend: The Groom
This year, more and more grooms are ditching the conventional tuxedo in favor of a more elegant and personalized suit. Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman wore an embroidered suit jacket to the Cubs’ White House celebration in December, while Brian Jordan Alvarez married Dean Snell in Hawaiian shirts on the beach in November. Now, actor and writer Alan Yang tied the knot with Christine Ko in L.A. on Feb. 9, wearing an embroidered suit to the al fresco location, surrounded by his and his bride’s artistic and dessert passions. More wedding decorations offer dessert buffets with traditional and creative treats.
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