Seneca College - RED 2017 - 37

GIVING
BACK

70

Number of students who received
an Alumni Pay It Forward Bursary
in 2016/17.

Donor Q & A

PHOTO: NEVILLE POY

Vivienne Poy
A gift of support and
unique design

The Hon. Dr. Vivienne
Poy is a designer, scholar,
author and former Chancellor of the University of
Toronto. After graduating
from the Fashion Arts
program, she founded
Vivienne Poy Mode,
designing unique knitwear
for clients in North
America and Asia. Dr. Poy
is also the first Canadian of
Asian descent appointed
to the Senate of Canada.
This year, she established
an endowment to support
future Fashion Arts
students and contributed
samples and patterns of
her knitwear to Seneca's
Fashion Resource Centre.
Dr. Poy shares her
thoughts on Seneca,
giving back and her
passion for gardening.
How did your time at Seneca affect you?
The Fashion Arts program gave me a lot of
confidence in myself. Until then, I was a
stay-at-home mother. When I decided to
return to school to train for a profession, I
applied to the Fashion Arts program at
Seneca. This set me on a path to expand
my horizons.
I was very busy. Our children were still
young, so I had to make sure they were off to
school before I went to classes, and returned
home when they got back from school.
Fortunately, Seneca was close to my home,
so I was able to do that and fit in all the
homework, plus everything else that a

mother does. I went to Seneca because I
needed a good foundation for what I wanted
to do, and what I learnt gave me the ability
to run my fashion business independently.
What was a typical day like for you while
you were running your business? I was
the business owner, as well as the designer
and pattern maker. Having good staff really
helped me. During the week, I was at my
head office, and most Saturdays, I was at
my Yorkville boutique. There was a lot of
juggling between home and work.
Why was it important for you to support
Fashion Arts students? I've always supported skills development and the humanities
because these are areas often neglected when
it comes to funding. I know how difficult it is
to make it in the fashion industry, and I like to
see students achieve without having too
many financial difficulties.
Your donation included samples of your
own designs for the Fashion Resource
Centre. What pieces did you choose?
I designed unique knitwear because I
treated knitwear like fabric. Most people
knit with a written pattern. I used yarns,
pearls and beads to create my own fabric.
The pieces were hand-knitted or crocheted
and sewn together. It's a skill I learnt at
Seneca. I have not come across other
designers who do that, so, for historic
reasons, it's nice for students to be exposed
to a different way of doing things.
Are you designing these days? I closed
my business in 1995 to go to graduate school.
But I still design for myself and my
family. I design jewelry, furniture and
my gardens. Designing is very much a part
of my life.
What's next for Vivienne Poy? I'm working
on another book with my husband, who has
become a photographer since retiring. I'm
a gardener, and this new book is about my
love for nature and will include my husband's
photography. It's a fun book. I needed to get
away from intense research for a little while.

Learn more about Dr. Poy's knitwear and various writings
at viviennepoy.com

RED

2017 37
http://www.viviennepoy.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Seneca College - RED 2017
