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Guo Pei - Rising Queen of Couture

Hailed as the Chinese Coco Chanel, Guo Pei aged 52, is well recognised as China’s couturier extraordinaire. Her designs present a mix of fine traditional Chinese craftsmanship, the exploration of contemporary innovation and Western-style. She is a modern representation of her cultural heritage, where she translates new life into embroidery and painting are taken from old traditions.

(image from: Julienne Schaer for China Institute)

Born in China in 1967, Guo Pei is passionate about dressmaking ever since she started sewing at a young tender age of two. She continued to excel and graduated at the top of her class from the Beijing School of Industrial Fashion. In 1997, she even launched her brand - Rose Studio. However, her success did not come easy. Being a designer in China where it was uniform dominated, it did not value handcrafts such as embroidery. Thus, she had to be left alone to teach herself most of the skills she is known for today. Her strong dedication in perfecting her designs despite the long hours inspires people to push beyond their expectations or limits; create pieces of work that timeless and fueled by the beauty of pure passion and creativity.

Breaking all odds, Guo Pei’s name emerged when Rihanna chose to wear one of her extravagant designs in the 2015 Met Gala. It exploded on the internet, becoming a worldwide sensation with people commenting on how it looks like “roti-prata” or an “omelette egg”.

(image from: AP Images)

Her journey as a designer grew more in the same year. Other than holding her first solo exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris in July, she was also honoured to become an invited member of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, the chief governing body of the high-fashion industry, allowing her to show on the Paris Haute Couture Week calendar. In January 2016, she made her Paris Haute Couture debut, showcasing her show-stopper “Courtyard” collection. With her continuous line ups of success in a short expanse of time, she was quickly accredited as TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People and one of the Business of Fashion's 500 most influential people shaping the global fashion industry.

(image from: Fashionisers - Courtyard Collection SS16)

Guo Pei is currently known to be one of China’s most prolific designers, having an iconic reputation for high-quality, bespoke designs. Her influences have been shown from daywear for successful businesswomen, to elegant gowns for the red carpet, to elaborate wedding gowns, or costumes for films, the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the annual CCTV New Year’s gala. Ultimately, Guo Pei is a passionate artisan, evoking people’s emotions and inspiring them through her art. She is one designer everyone needs to know, be inspired and to learn from. 

(image from: Getty Images & AFP - fashionstudiomagazine)

Links:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesasia/2015/12/03/chinas-queen-of-couture/#6ffcf61173bb

http://www.guo-pei.fr/fw2019/2020-alternate-universe

https://www.thatsmags.com/shanghai/post/22624/tbt-an-exclusive-interview-with-fashion-empress-guo-pei

http://www.guo-pei.fr/bio

https://fashionista.com/2016/09/guo-pei-china-paris-couture-rose-studio

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