Yuchen Han of ‘Project Runway’ births futuristic fashion out of survival

A fierce mini skirt, armor and helmet made of deconstructed soccer balls, a full denim power robe made in six hours, a sultry gothic Disney villain dress that left viewers breathless—these are just a few of the many creations made by the expert hands of Yuchen Han on this season of Project Runway.

Yuchen Han and his winning look from the unconventional materials challenge.

Courtesy of Yuchen Han

Hailing from a small village in the Chinese province of Shanxi and now based in New York City, Han is a queer Chinese designer and visionary. In 2019, he founded ALIENANT, a fashion brand that “elevates fashion beyond mere clothing, becoming armor and healing for the soul, and a 'wearable defense mechanism' against the rigors of life.”

Before getting cast on Project Runway’s 21st season, the 29-year-old designer received countless honors such as the YU Prize and the Yinger Prize, two highly prestigious awards granted to promising emerging Chinese designers in the industry. He’s also collaborated with global brands like UGG and Li-Ning, as well as created pieces that have been worn by artists including Coldplay and NLE Choppa.

ALIENANT has released three collections so far, all heavily crafted and curated through the lens of Han’s lived experiences with domestic abuse and depression. His portfolio led him to the global Project Runway stage, where he shined as a standout this season with his high placements, challenge win, and endearing personality that made even the toughest judges—Law Roach, specifically—fold.

In episode one, Han was challenged to make a villain-inspired look.

Courtesy of Yuchen Han

Shortly after his elimination we chatted with Han about his time on the show, the unexpected relationships that came from the experience, and how his vision of fashion comes from a futuristic worldview shaped by his survival.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Andre Lawes Menchavez: You pulled inspiration from a lot of queer icons that you love this season on Project Runway—such as Pray Tell’s death robe from POSE and Lady Gaga’s early fashions—and you even stated you used your own personal experiences as muses of your garments. How personal has fashion been for you in your life, especially as a queer Asian designer?
Yuchen Han: I have loved art since I was super young. And when I was young, I got abused by my father for a long time, and at that point, I always felt like I was a loser. Always. I couldn’t even look at people's eyes when talking to people. But when I was in high school, Lady Gaga came out. She really empowered me. It was then when I started making clothes with plastic bags and cardboard at home. Putting all these clothes on myself looked tacky, but it was super creative, so I felt empowered. I’d be looking at myself in the mirror and I was like, “Wow, I see myself.”

So starting from there, I felt the power of fashion, which was so different, and it really saved me. I have become more brave since then. I’d be thinking about the future then, and I knew I wanted to start my own brand and empower the people who are just like me. That was my starting point and after that I just spent my whole life chasing fashion.

Han's activewear look from episode two.

Courtesy of Yuchen Han

ALM: Evident on Project Runway, but even more so with your collections before the show, it’s clear everything you create has an intentional message stitched into it. Can you tell us about the messaging of the three collections you’ve created thus far with your brand, ALIENANT?
YH: I am a person who uses fashion as a medium to tell my story. I'm a storyteller. I have several collections right now and every collection is talking about a stage of my life. For example, the first collection I did is called “My Childhood.” It's talking about my childhood under my father’s influence, so I used a lot of materials that expressed how I felt during that period of time, talking about domestic violence. In the next collection, “A Second Before Awakening,” I address my depression during my master's program in New York City. And then the next collection, “Destroy and Restructure,” represents how I overcame my depression.

All of my collections use all of my obstacles as my starting point. My collections and my fashions are trying to transfer all this negative energy into something beautiful, into something powerful. That's how I do fashion. It's about my own resilience and I wanted to use my fashion to really show people they can do the same thing as well.

ALM: Could you tell us where the name “ALIENANT” comes from?
YH: When I was young, I had this recurring dream of a little ant carrying a big grain of rice on its back, crawling alone in the wet mist. That’s where the “ant” part comes in. But as for the “alien” part, it’s many things. I’ve felt like a literal alien since I was so young because I always felt like I was a person from the future, or not from this Earth. But also, when I was young, I was alienated. And in the U.S., they consider foreigners as aliens. So, the “alien” part is the three meanings all together.

Han's winning unconventional materials look and its companion look from the next episode.

Courtesy of Yuchen Han

ALM: With so much of your lived experiences molding your craft, did your former and current homes of China and New York City have any influence on your out-of-this-world visions of fashion as well?
YH: China was my start. I got my bachelor’s degree at the China Academy of Art, which is the best art school in China. My campus was in Shanghai, and Shanghai is such an amazing city that opened my horizons in such a short period of time. It’s a place that helped me build my aesthetic up.

And New York is super complicated, but super chaotically magical at the same time. It's a place like nowhere else in the world. New York inspired me to mix my different backgrounds, cultures, and aesthetics and also how to make all my chaos into something new. New York was also the city I lived in during my big challenges with depression, so New York taught me to be tough as a designer.

ALM: It was so special to see you represent your cultures and your communities this season on Project Runway. Did you feel any pressure at all being one of only two Asian designers this season?
YH: I just felt proud, to be honest. In the U.S., it's not really easy to represent as an Asian, even though it's 2025. As you can see, we had two Asians there. So, what I focused on doing is just to try my best to do whatever I could and really represent me and our community. I feel like it was necessary, so I was just trying my best.

ALM: You made us proud. I especially loved seeing the relationships flourish between you, Ethan, and Veejay—my queer and Asian dream top three. Did you expect to leave the show with such strong friendships?
YH: I received a lot of unexpected friendships during this process, which is really amazing. I love Ethan! From day one, Ethan just really liked me for no reason. I felt the vibe, and I liked him a lot as well. He’d be holding my hand and would say, “We're going to be very good friends.” We found out we were born on the same day, same year, same age. It was very amazing. It was just chemistry.

From left, Veejay Floresca, Ethan Mundt, and Yuchen Han.

Courtesy of Yuchen Han

And with Veejay, I just love that girl for no reason as well! There was one day when we were going home after a shoot and Ethan, Veejay and I were sitting in the same car. I was sitting in the back, both of them sitting in the front, and I was just looking at them in that one moment and I just felt how beautiful it was to sit in one car with two of my favorite people in this show. It just happened so naturally.

ALM: Are there any specific workroom moments you wished got aired between y’all?
YH: Yeah, for the unconventional materials challenge! Veejay actually helped me by giving me two extra balls. And I gave a lot of straws to Ethan. We actually all really helped each other.

ALM: Love the sisterhood! However, what I don’t love is that your time got cut short. Although eliminated, you were loved so much by fans! How’d this reception feel?
YH: I didn't have too many expectations or control of how I was gonna look like on TV, because this is my first time on TV. I'm just a normal person, just a designer in real life, so I have no experience on television. I know the editing can sometimes be so much different from real life somehow. So I came to the show without any expectations. I just wanted everything to happen naturally and I trusted the process.

But after the show came out, I really feel like I do love how I was shown on TV because it was just the real me. I didn’t have too much drama. I'm just a person who's really focused on my work all the time. But as you know, if drama does come to me, I have to fight back as well. For example, that first episode when me and Jesus fought. Then there was also me crying when Miss Joan left. I cried because I really felt like she went home just because of me. I was just being real. But overall, I think I did my best.

Han and his final look from season 21.

Courtesy of Yuchen Han

ALM: You may be presently missing from the show, but Yuchen you are the future. What’s the next fashion revolution you have in store?
YH: My next plan is doing my next collection, which is called “Spiritual Awakening.” It's going to be something big. My goal is to amplify my voice through my brand and really help the world.