Colleen Quen

Eclectic Couturier And Artist

Colleen Quen feels her designs. She is a true haute couture artist! Colleen's understanding of the human body plays a central part in her approach to design. Trained in French couture and a former figure skater, she designs with grace and precision. Her creations drape, fold, and flow with the clean, refined movements of a dancer, revealing her sensitivity to how a dress moves with and embraces the body.

Her mother, who designed dresses as a hobby, inspired Colleen's love of fashion design. "My mother taught me handwork like knitting, embroidery, tie dye, and macramé. I loved colors, fabrics, and the way clothing was constructed," she remembers. Colleen grew up just east of San Francisco in Alameda, California and graduated from Encinal High School in 1980. She traces her American-Chinese roots back to 1880's San Francisco.

Besides expressing herself through clothing and drawing, Colleen grew up fascinated by music, singing, and dancing. Her elementary and high school days were filled with musical influences. She longed to pursue more ballet, modern dance, and figure skating; these disciplines gave her a creative outlet. "Figure freestyle skating is like drawing and dancing on the ice with your feet. It requires precision, perfection, and yet artistry." She loved working hard for her art and presenting it in a beautiful way. Colleen went on to compete as an adult skater for eight years and won many first place awards!

The early 1980's brought the rumblings of a computer revolution. All of a sudden, "doing something with computers and the Internet" became the answer to a great career and lots of money. Colleen caught the computer bug and decided to pursue a degree in computer science. She graduated from California State University, Hayward with a knowledge of how to write software creatively; but all the while her heart was calling out for fashion design! Colleen wasted no time. She began looking for the best design school available in San Francisco and found FIDM. An intense two years of patternmaking, draping, and designing later, Colleen graduated from FIDM's Fashion Design Program in 1987 with an outstanding 3.9 grade point average! She values every minute of her time spent at FIDM. Colleen expresses, "FIDM prepared me thoroughly with pattern and design skills for what was needed out there to get an industry job. I gained the confidence to step out and work hard!"

Colleen explored an impressive series of jobs after graduation from FIDM. She worked for Eileen West, Wilkes Bashford, Bugi Bugi, Brian Fedorow, Karen Alexander, Sue Siegel, and the Gap. After working in the fashion industry for ten years as a design assistant, cutter, and patternmaker, Colleen was ready to branch out and refine her art, especially in patterns. She explains, "Patternmaking to me is like the engineering of what ticks in a garment; its structure, complexity, and sophistication."

With a desire to study the body in more detail and do custom design work, Colleen decided to pursue a masters in French couture. Enter Simone Sethna, an amazing designer whose contemporaries included such couturiers as Christian Dior and Pierre Balmain. With the highest haute couture degree possible, which can only be earned in Paris, France, Simone was the perfect teacher! Colleen apprenticed with her in San Francisco full-time for two years. It was total immersion into the art of fashion as Colleen lived, breathed, and patterndrafted the essence of French haute couture. "It was intense, and Simone was the most difficult teacher, but she was by far the best to learn from." Colleen learned to create a moulage, a mold or "second skin" of a body with 36 precise measurements! She gained the confidence to design and draft anything and truly refined her art.

Colleen is inspired by trips to Parisian fashion museums where she can study the designs of masters like Balenciaga, Chanel, and Charles James. Like Colleen, they draped their haute couture gowns in satin directly on their clients for an absolute perfect fit. Colleen's gowns are literally designed on the body! Nuances of nature are evident in Colleen's organic forms. "I am especially inspired by flowers and their natural form of movement. I tend to mimic that in my clothing. When I sculpt a sleeve or collar, nature brings out the best shapes and colors for me to design and create."

It wasn't long before the world took notice of Colleen's exquisite designs! She was commissioned to design elegant gowns for several socialites in the San Francisco Opera Guild, including the president, Patricia Sprincin. Recently, Colleen collaborated with her husband to create a dual art and couture show called "Fashion and Furniture." She is married to Rick Lee, a talented sculptor and furniture designer. They met at an adult Chinese camp in Taiwan with the mutual inspiration of tracing their heritage. The gorgeous exhibit was inspired by and evoked the five elements of Chinese cosmology: fire, water, earth, metal, and wood.

Colleen has great advice for those in love with fashion design. "I highly recommend going to FIDM to get the best education in preparing you for the industry. You need teachers that have experience! Work hard and everything will pay off. There are always doors opening up, and if you are ready, your dream is waiting out there for you. Ask and you shall receive...if you are ready!"

What's on the horizon for Colleen? Plenty! She will be the wedding designer for the exclusive boutique Marina Morrison, LTD; she's been invited, as a guest designer, to a high-end furniture store in Oahu, Hawaii; and she will be designing costumes for dancers and Taiko drummers for Facing East Dance & Music, a well-known dance company in San Francisco!