Peony Blossom

Vivienne Tam (United States of America)

Vivienne Tam has become well known for creating beautiful clothes that appeal to all ages, ethnicities, and income levels. She has earned the reputation for offering stylish and high-quality product while at the same time inviting the consumer to experience the inspiration behind it. A longstanding dedication to innovation and exotic imagery, Vivienne Tam is truly one of the world’s most passionate and symbolic designers in fashion today.

As a designer of clothing that "suggests tolerance, global acumen, and a Fourth of July faith in individual expression," Tam, in the words of fashion critic and curator Richard Martin, possesses an "idealistic globalism that transcends politics and offers a more enchanted, peaceful world."

Born in Canton, China, Vivienne Tam moved to Hong Kong when she was three years old. Her bi-cultural upbringing in the then British colony was the first stage in the development of her signature East-meets-West style.

After graduating from Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Vivienne Tam moved to New York where she thrived on the excitement and energy of the fashion world. New York became a home for her and a continuing source of stimulation for her designs.

In 1994, Vivienne Tam launched her signature collection of Eastern inspired clothing with a modern edge on the New York runways. In 1995, she introduced the influential "Mao" collection that triumphantly crossed over from the fashion world into the art world.

Then in 1997 Vivienne Tam launched the venerable Buddha collection. The public and celebrities around the world quickly embraced both collections. Some of the images became so popular that scores of designers even adopted the look into their designs.

Pieces of the collections were ultimately incorporated into the permanent archives of the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, The Museum of FIT and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

In an era where the fashion industry is populated by numerous names and emerging new talents, Vivienne Tam has shown that she can consistently appeal to everyone from high-society to urban to teens, offering them fresh collections every season. She is poised to become the next multi-tasking, multi-successful designer and businesswoman.

Design Synopsis of Peony Blossom

The peony flower also known as the "King of Flowers" is a distinct element that Vivienne Tam feels best represents a beautiful China. In 1903, the Qing dynasty declared the Peony as the National Chinese flower and it has since been used symbolically in all facets of Chinese art. Growing up in Hong Kong, she remembers always going to the flowers market with her mother and sister to buy peonies to decorate their home with and to celebrate the Chinese New Year. Those memories are so strong that she still always uses peonies as inspiration for her designs today.

The beauty of the Peony flower translates effortlessly into a multitude of fabrics that she has incorporated into her everyday designs. Her black and white peony dress first appeared in her 1994 collection and was then later chosen as an exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The exhibition was called Bloom which was later collected for the permanent archives of the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.

In 2006, she used peony pattern started as inspiration in her platinum wedding dress collection when she collaborated with Platinum Guild International for the world debut of "Platinum Wedding" by Vivienne Tam. She designed three wedding gowns using Platinum thread embroidered fabric and showcased the collection in Beijing: one was a White/Western-style wedding gown; the second was a Red/Chinese-style traditional but modified wedding gown and the third was a Purple/Wedding cocktail dress. All three of the gowns traveled to Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, India, and Germany.

To create the mosaic path, she used different color and texture stones to assemble the peony flowers pattern. When everybody walks on this path they feel happiness and peace. She also used bronze inlaid to frame the path and petals in order to give it more definition and a sense of luxuriance and wealth. Together, the mosaic path symbolizes the admiration we have for the Peony and the celebration we will relish as being part of the City Art Square of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Information provided by Sun Hung Kai Properties Charitable Fund Limited.