Anna Sui

I wanted to be a designer since I was a kid, and I was always attracted to the way rock stars dressed and the way their girlfriends dressed. I always thought that they were the most interesting people.

To me, fashion is like a mirror. It's a reflection of the times. And if it doesn't reflect the times, it's not fashion. Because people aren't gonna be wearing it.

I think whenever people talk about the 'Anna Sui woman,' they're talking about someone that's probably kind of more downtown, and there's always like this ambiguity: Is she a good girl, or a bad girl?

At the point when I wanted to become a designer, I didn't think about, 'Oh, but I'm a woman,' just like didn't think about like, well, 'I'm Chinese' or that 'I'm in Michigan.' You know, none of those things were obstacles to me. I just had this idea that this is what I had to do.

I grew up in the suburbs of Detroit.

When punk really started to happen, it was a reaction against the disco craze of the time.

I always say the next big thing will happen in unexpected places - up and coming cities that aren't necessarily boom markets.

Longing and desire goes further than instant satisfaction. That's human nature.

When I started my own business, my main reason for designing clothes was that I wanted to dress rock stars and the people who went to rock concerts. It didn't go beyond that aspiration at that point.

I think you have to be in the right place at the right time. And understand that and know when it is your time and how you react to it and how you respond to it.

I love history. I love art. I like to mix it all together, but in the end it somehow has to all make sense.

I just love the way the '60s rock stars put themselves together, because they were like dandies and peacocks. They really lived out their fantasies - and dressed their fantasies.

To me if you're going have a show, it should be a show. It should be entertaining and take you on a journey.

I just love the whole idea of conversational prints.

I love punk, I love a lot of British Invasion bands, I love garage bands.

There are always different influences each season. It could be a person, it could be a piece of furniture; it depends on what I'm obsessing about.

Every collection that I work on, I always think, Is this cool enough to wear to a concert?

Creating a book and creating a collection involve a lot of editing.

Nothing's faster than the Internet.

Fashion should be fun and accessible.

I live for fashion.

I love going to flea markets especially when I am traveling, because I love seeing the stuff of other cultures, handicrafts and things with historical content.

Every time that I wanted to give up, if I saw an interesting textile, print what ever, suddenly I would see a collection.

Well, my whole thing is that I'm kind of like a show-off!

I think I'm a global citizen. My parents came from China, were educated in France and emigrated to the United States. And I think that opened up my mind to be able to live and work anywhere.