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Daily Fashion & Runway News
Sep 13, 2009
With Martha Stewart, Rachel Roy, and Steve Harvey.
In 1994, Chado Ralph Rucci was born and a new standard was set for luxurious dressing with an artistic twist. Rucci’s a favorite with society mavens and mature fashionistas, thanks to his sculptural silhouettes, impeccable craftsmanship, and to-die-for materials. In 2002, the two-time CFDA-nominee became the first American designer since Mainbocher in the 1930s to be invited to show at Paris haute couture under his own name. An accomplished painter, the Philly-born designer draws inspiration from his own art, Japanese symbolism, and the work of Francis Bacon and Cy Twombly. Rucci designs all of his prints, and works closely with mills to create new fabrics and revive historically important textiles. Rucci won the top fashion honor at Cooper Hewitt’s 2008 National Design Awards. His love for Japanese culture is apparent not only in his rigorous-yet-ethereal clothes but also in the name of his label: “Chado” is derived from the traditional Japanese tea ceremony, and symbolizes respect, tranquility, and integrity.
“Chado is never about big surprises or theatrics, with seasons mostly distinguished by whichever virtuoso technique Rucci happens to have focused on, and how he applies it to familiar silhouettes.”—Laird Borrelli Style.com
“By now it's a given that Ralph Rucci makes exquisite clothes of an extraordinary quality unparalleled in New York. It's part of his design ethos to stretch his artistic and technical muscle with every outing.”—Women's Wear Daily Staff Women's Wear Daily
Ralph Rucci