Yesterday I was at the Legion of honor for the Guo Pei exhibit, a “Couture Fantasy” and a fantasy it was.  Guo Pei was raised during the Cultural Revolution in China when everyone wore the same outfit in gray or brown.  There was no display of creativity or uniqueness.  She listened to stories from her grandmother of beautiful clothes and jewelry.  From that her imagination grew and flowed and she says “Working to create something is like a religion to me.”  

Guo Pei: “There is a Chinese saying: “One flower, one world: one leaf and one awakening.”  For me, flowers express happiness, joy, and pleasure. When I was little, my maternal grandmother told me, “The bigger the tree, the more luxurious its roots.” What this means to me is that the parts of someone you see, like their successes, are due to really good development of their roots. The roots of a plant can sometimes be even more beautiful than what is visible. Many flowers fruit at the root or bloom underground. I tell my children that if you want to be very successful in the future, you have to cultivate, and you must cultivate downward and not upward. What people ultimately see of you – for example, my work – is only a tiny part of everything.”