Guo Pei Given Honorary Couture Status

Rihanna wearing Guo Pei at the Met Ball, Getty Images

Guo Pei, the designer behind that Met Ball creation worn by Rihanna earlier this year, is one of three designers to have been named a guest member for Couture Fashion Week in January. Joining Pei are Iris Van Herpen and Yacine Aouadi, who have also been selected by the official Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture to show their spring/summer 2016 collections alongside the likes of Chanel, Dior and Valentino.

Chinese designer Pei hit the headlines in considerable fashion when Rihanna wore one of her designs to the 2015 Costume Insititute Gala; a spectacular golden cape which reportedly took two years to make. The designer was also featured in the Met's accompanying exhibition, 'China: Through the Looking Glass', and recently collaborated with MAC Cosmetics on a make-up line.

"We would like to gratefully extend our appreciation to everyone, especially our friends, counterparts and colleagues in France, who helped with making this groundbreaking historical moment for Asian couture a reality," said Dr Frank Cintamani, the president of the Asian Couture Federation, in a statement shared on Pei's Instagram account. "This is a very significant step forward in the recognition and celebration of the tremendous amount of couture talent and creativity that exists within Asia. Please join us in congratulating Guo Pei and all of the people who firmly believed and supported the notion that there should not be any barriers for creativity in fashion."

Renowned for her fantastical and technologically advanced creations, the Dutch designer Iris Van Herpen made her debut on the Couture Fashion Week schedule in 2011, but after three years moved to the ready-to-wear Paris Fashion Week schedule. It's believed that she will pause her ready-to-wear collections in order to concentrate on the forthcoming couture show.