Stevie & Sui

[michelej1]

Style.com 4/15/09

http://www.style.com/stylefile/2009/...-sui-rocks-on/

What was the impetus for Anna Sui’s career? “I wanted to dress rock stars and people who go to rock concerts,” said the designer at last night’s Friends of the Costume Institute event, which drew the likes of Baby Jane Holzer, Stephen Burrows, and artist and longtime Sui collaborator Hiroshi Tanabe. Sui, who will receive the CFDA’s Lifetime Achievement Award this June, shared amusing anecdotes about how she achieved her dream. Dave Navarro, for one, walked for the designer after meeting her on an elevator, and Stevie Nicks invited Sui to come backstage at a concert after she had dissed Fleetwood Mac in print. Musicians aren’t the only ones drawn to Sui’s colorful, evocative clothing: Her entertaining, accessory-laden shows always feature stellar castings. How does she manage it? “I was in a unique position. I knew a lot of the girls socially and it’s no secret that one of my best friends is Steven Meisel,” she said.