LOOK: Woman brings back beauty of the Tang dynasty with ultra-retro photo shoot

In a viral series of photos, a court lady of the Tang dynasty reluctantly devours a bowl of tangyuan

A Chinese clothing designer has become an internet sensation after her impressive cosplay photo shoots harkening back to the days of the Tang dynasty went viral online.

38-year-old Ao Luojia says that she was inspired by a piece of Tang era pottery from the Shaanxi History Museum in Xi’an to create the photo shoots. In contrast to China today, the standard of beauty during the Tang dynasty (618–907) was for women to be plump and voluptuous, with the extra fat indicating wealth.

Ao creates traditional Chinese clothing for contemporary Chinese women. Ahead of last week’s Lantern Festival, she modeled for a series of photos in her own self-designed costumes showing a court lady of the Tang dynasty reluctantly devouring a bowl of sweet rice dumplings (tangyuan 汤圆), the festival’s specialty:

Here’s another popular series of photos showing her receiving a red packet:

After receiving overwhelming praise online, Ao has said that she will continue to plan and post photo shoots which celebrate the beauty of China’s past.

[Images via 馨润-琉璃]