Bringing China chic back home
By Patsy Yang |
July 8, 2012, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
CHINESE American fashion designer Vivienne Tam's "China chic'' sensibility bridges East and West, not only in the world of fashion.
"I'm a lifestyle designer, not just a fashion designer," she said, sitting on her favorite red ploum sofa in the suite she designed for Hotel Icon, looking out to the stunning panoramic view of Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor.
Owned by The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the recently-opened Hotel Icon in Tsim Sha Tsui East is a testament to the creativity of Hong Kong designers and also operates as a research and training facility for the esteemed School and Hotel of Tourism Management.
As an alumnus of PolyU, Tam paid tribute to her alma mater and created this one-of-a-kind VT Suite to showcase her signature Chinese chic style. It is a peek into Tam's private world and an expression of her ideal proverbial home-from-home.
Born in Guangdong Province and raised in Hong Kong, Tam has become one of the most successful designers fusing Eastern and Western styles since her debut collection in 1994 in New York City.
Though living mostly in New York since 1982, the 55-year-old has developed every collection based on her research of Chinese culture, and her designs clearly demonstrate her Chinese heritage. Her collection inspired by the Mao jacket has been incorporated into the permanent archives of museums around the world. She also published a lifestyle book "China Chic" to show Chinese culture in a way that is not filtered through Western biases.
Q: This Vivienne Tam suite at Hotel Icon is inspired by your New York apartment. How have you translated that into this hotel setting? Did you have any Chinese influence in this interior project?
A: I traveled a lot and experienced different hotels but most hotel rooms are very corporate, conventional with unnatural materials. I wanted to have the feeling of a "home-from-home." If everything is comfortable, you feel at ease. That is the concept of my first hotel room design: no sharp angles, lots of nature, so you feel that you're in a garden, and you also feel like you're in a gallery. I handpicked furniture and artwork I like to offer to guests, to inspire them and encourage them to come back.
Regarding the Chinese influence, I think the feeling is Chinese: the feeling of a Chinese garden, the feeling of yin and yang materials I used, the Shanghai Art Deco style bedroom and the colors.
Q: How did the Hotel Icon approach you for this project?
A: I'm an alumnus of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University so it was an honor to take on this challenging project and give something back to the school that nurtured my interest in fashion design. I always wanted to design a hotel suite, so it was a great opportunity.
Q: From your perspective as a fashion designer, what insights do you think you bring to the interior project and do you draw inspiration from similar sources between fashion and interior?
A: Personality, comfort and feeling free. This space is meant to change and grow. I wanted it to be uncluttered - a free space to dream. And yes, the inspiration is the same for fashion and interiors. If you've been to my stores and my New York apartment, I collect things from everywhere, not particularly from famous names. It can be from flea markets and any part of the world. I always come back to China for different inspiration and concepts.
Q: Would you like to design more interiors? And how do you decide on projects?
A: Oh yes, I would love to. I'd love to do "China chic" hotels, furniture, interiors. I'm a lifestyle designer and that will always be in my plan. For projects, I decide on those I love to do. It will always be Vivienne Tam feeling but settings would be different.
Q: You once said your mother was your great inspirations. How did she inspire you?
A: Yes, I was very much inspired by the way she made her clothes and patterns, as well as the way she wore her clothes. I remember when I was young and we didn't have lots of money; we got remnants of leftover fabrics from a factory and made our own patchwork. My mother would say, "it's the only piece in the world and it is the most beautiful one." That was how she inspired me, instilling in me that it is so important to have your own individual ideas. Even though you have no money, you can create.
Q: With so many established brand names and new designers coming through, how do you stay competitive?
A: You have to know what's happening and stay true to what you are doing and who you are. Maybe people won't like one collection too much, but you need to stay true to yourself and your style. Trends are important as they reflect what people want of a certain moment. Fashion - and the world - is changing so much. If you still remain with what you did five years ago, you never move ahead. You stay who you are, but if you don't move with the times it doesn't work. So you have to be who you are, but at the same time know what's happening in the world.
Q: Your business in Hong Kong grew 40 percent last year, showing consumers are embracing your designs and concepts. Why do you think this is?
A: I guess consumers are embracing the "Chineseness'' and are more open to Chinese designers and styles. They are not only looking at the major foreign brands but wanting something different. If you have something different to offer, people will buy from you because you "do things from your heart," as my mother always taught me. If something comes from your heart, you will win other people's hearts. Another thing in business is that you need to hang in there during difficult times and don't give up easily.
Q: What's your must-buy fashion item this season?
A: For me, pants this season. Every season I try to wear something different from last season. I've been wearing dresses, so this season, I'll switch to colorful pants.
"I'm a lifestyle designer, not just a fashion designer," she said, sitting on her favorite red ploum sofa in the suite she designed for Hotel Icon, looking out to the stunning panoramic view of Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor.
Owned by The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the recently-opened Hotel Icon in Tsim Sha Tsui East is a testament to the creativity of Hong Kong designers and also operates as a research and training facility for the esteemed School and Hotel of Tourism Management.
As an alumnus of PolyU, Tam paid tribute to her alma mater and created this one-of-a-kind VT Suite to showcase her signature Chinese chic style. It is a peek into Tam's private world and an expression of her ideal proverbial home-from-home.
Born in Guangdong Province and raised in Hong Kong, Tam has become one of the most successful designers fusing Eastern and Western styles since her debut collection in 1994 in New York City.
Though living mostly in New York since 1982, the 55-year-old has developed every collection based on her research of Chinese culture, and her designs clearly demonstrate her Chinese heritage. Her collection inspired by the Mao jacket has been incorporated into the permanent archives of museums around the world. She also published a lifestyle book "China Chic" to show Chinese culture in a way that is not filtered through Western biases.
Q: This Vivienne Tam suite at Hotel Icon is inspired by your New York apartment. How have you translated that into this hotel setting? Did you have any Chinese influence in this interior project?
A: I traveled a lot and experienced different hotels but most hotel rooms are very corporate, conventional with unnatural materials. I wanted to have the feeling of a "home-from-home." If everything is comfortable, you feel at ease. That is the concept of my first hotel room design: no sharp angles, lots of nature, so you feel that you're in a garden, and you also feel like you're in a gallery. I handpicked furniture and artwork I like to offer to guests, to inspire them and encourage them to come back.
Regarding the Chinese influence, I think the feeling is Chinese: the feeling of a Chinese garden, the feeling of yin and yang materials I used, the Shanghai Art Deco style bedroom and the colors.
Q: How did the Hotel Icon approach you for this project?
A: I'm an alumnus of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University so it was an honor to take on this challenging project and give something back to the school that nurtured my interest in fashion design. I always wanted to design a hotel suite, so it was a great opportunity.
Q: From your perspective as a fashion designer, what insights do you think you bring to the interior project and do you draw inspiration from similar sources between fashion and interior?
A: Personality, comfort and feeling free. This space is meant to change and grow. I wanted it to be uncluttered - a free space to dream. And yes, the inspiration is the same for fashion and interiors. If you've been to my stores and my New York apartment, I collect things from everywhere, not particularly from famous names. It can be from flea markets and any part of the world. I always come back to China for different inspiration and concepts.
Q: Would you like to design more interiors? And how do you decide on projects?
A: Oh yes, I would love to. I'd love to do "China chic" hotels, furniture, interiors. I'm a lifestyle designer and that will always be in my plan. For projects, I decide on those I love to do. It will always be Vivienne Tam feeling but settings would be different.
Q: You once said your mother was your great inspirations. How did she inspire you?
A: Yes, I was very much inspired by the way she made her clothes and patterns, as well as the way she wore her clothes. I remember when I was young and we didn't have lots of money; we got remnants of leftover fabrics from a factory and made our own patchwork. My mother would say, "it's the only piece in the world and it is the most beautiful one." That was how she inspired me, instilling in me that it is so important to have your own individual ideas. Even though you have no money, you can create.
Q: With so many established brand names and new designers coming through, how do you stay competitive?
A: You have to know what's happening and stay true to what you are doing and who you are. Maybe people won't like one collection too much, but you need to stay true to yourself and your style. Trends are important as they reflect what people want of a certain moment. Fashion - and the world - is changing so much. If you still remain with what you did five years ago, you never move ahead. You stay who you are, but if you don't move with the times it doesn't work. So you have to be who you are, but at the same time know what's happening in the world.
Q: Your business in Hong Kong grew 40 percent last year, showing consumers are embracing your designs and concepts. Why do you think this is?
A: I guess consumers are embracing the "Chineseness'' and are more open to Chinese designers and styles. They are not only looking at the major foreign brands but wanting something different. If you have something different to offer, people will buy from you because you "do things from your heart," as my mother always taught me. If something comes from your heart, you will win other people's hearts. Another thing in business is that you need to hang in there during difficult times and don't give up easily.
Q: What's your must-buy fashion item this season?
A: For me, pants this season. Every season I try to wear something different from last season. I've been wearing dresses, so this season, I'll switch to colorful pants.
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