Kim
Robinson Interview
With a new couture studio in Chater House, Central, Hong Kong,
hair fashion and style takes on a whole new dimension this
coming season for Kim Robinson.
Based in Hong Kong since his arrival in 1976, Robinson moved
women's perception of hair as integral to a signature or personal
style. He believes, "What happens above the neck and
on the body below has to be one cohesive message and a balance
in proportions. The ideal is to create a style that projects
individual identity."
With his name and reputation established in 1981, Robinson
was called to the Paris catwalks by Alexandre d'Paris in 1987
to work with the fashion houses of Lagerfeld, Yves St Laurent,
Givenchy, Gaultier, Valentino, Balmain, Ungaro and Oscar de
la Renta for their haute couture collections each season.
The experience and exposure took Robinson's name into the
international league of hair and fashion, with coverage by
US, UK, and French editions of Vogue, Cosmopolitan and Elle.
This led to a list of celebrities, from the late Princess
Diana and Audrey Hepburn, to actress Isabella Rossellini,
supermodels Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford, Kate Moss,
Claudia Schiffer and Asian screen luminaries Gong Li and Leslie
Cheung.
IZU caught up with the hair maestro and asked him a few questions
on what he thinks the definition of the 21st century woman
should be, trends of 2003 and life as Kim Robinson in general…
The woman of the 21st century - how
would you define her? The ideal woman that would represent
the 21st century should be confident, know who she is, and
definitely feel loved.
What
is beauty to you?
Definitely not me in the morning.
How do you decide a look for your client?
I spend extensive time listening to how the client feels on
her ideals of beauty before making my personal assessment.
I always find this works as I'm not imposing my taste on someone
else.
Are there any pressures that you go
through?
Trying to squeeze into my jeans because I've eaten too much
carbo.
What are some product(s) or item(s)
you believe that a woman should not live without? Why?
For the product, perfume. For the item, it would be the man
you love.
What are some fashion faux-pas (in
hair, makeup or fashion) that you see some women making today?
Plenty, however, the greatest would be trying too hard.
Being so fashion forward and style
defining in your industry, what are some of the "previews"
in makeup and hair that we can look forward to in the Spring
2003 season?
For hair - brown replaces blonde this season. Reds are definitely
out. For makeup - a well-defined eye teamed with baby pink
lips is a must have look this Spring 2003. It is prevalent
on the runway shows from Milan to New York.
Kim
Robinson Interview
What
is beauty to you?