Ralph Rucci

For more than 25 years, Ralph Rucci has been designing luxurious women’s clothing in both ready-to-wear and couture venues. In 1994 he established his current ready-to-wear label, Chado Ralph Rucci, choosing the name of the ancient Japanese tea ceremony to invoke his personal belief in the importance of tranquility, grace and integrity in daily life.

Rucci was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he attended Temple University, receiving a BA degree in philosophy and literature. After graduation he moved to New York to study Fashion Design at FIT. He held his first runway presentation, a made-to-order collection, in November 1981.

Throughout his career, Rucci has worked with the finest fabric and embroidery houses in Europe. He is also an accomplished fine artist and often translates his own paintings into highly original prints on both silk and cashmere fabrics. Indeed, much of his inspiration is drawn from fine art, ranging from Renaissance and ancient Asian art to the works of contemporary and modern artists such as Cy Twombly and Francis Bacon.

In 2002, Rucci was the first American since the 1940s to be invited by the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture to show his work as part of the official Haute Couture calendar. His work has been included in a great number of prestigious museum exhibits from New York to Tokyo. In October 2007, he will show his ready-to-wear collection in Paris for the first time.

The costumes for C. to C. (Close to Chuck) are Rucci’s first for American Ballet Theatre.