Unapologetic femininity, traditional moods, modern strength: this is what comes to mind when discussing Jason Wu. The Taiwanese-Canadian fashion designer became a fast-rising comet for translating now-outdated and outmoded notions of womenswear into a modern context. Simply, he picked up a certain kind of day-to-day glamour women abandoned during the sexual revolution of the 1960s and made it sharp, feminist, and daring enough to be wearable—and buyable—in the ’00s. The market, and famously Michelle Obama, paid attention. The former First Lady wore one of his pieces to her husband’s 2008 inaugural balls, and the rest was history for Wu.
What hasn’t truly been part of his history is furniture. But then again, we shouldn’t be all that surprised that the designer who once aligned himself with a brand as deep and broad as Hugo Boss would branch out into the category with a new collection for Interior Define. (Giorgio Armani, Karl Lagerfeld, Renzo Rosso, and many other fashion leaders have all played with furniture to one extent or another). What is somewhat surprising is how relaxed, how casual, how comfort-oriented his line of chairs and sofas appears at first glance. You don’t expect this from the man who dropped this for fall.
