Hong Kong, 17 September 2008 – Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong is delighted to announce that the legendary luxury hotel has provided sole inspiration for a new range of tableware by Hermès. Called Les Poèmes du Mandarin this 18-piece china collection will be used in the hotel’s exclusive Krug Room restaurant from 20 October 2008.

“This is a historical partnership of three of the world’s most prestigious luxury names: Mandarin Oriental, Hermès and Krug,” says General Manager Peter French. “This is the first time Hermès has created a range of tableware so closely linked to a specific place, and we believe that The Krug Room, which is one of one of the world’s most elite private dining rooms, is the perfect setting for the new china.”

Hidden in a secret location within Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong, The Krug Room is one of only two in the world and was created so that guests can discover the world’s most prestigious champagne in a sophisticated and private dining space. Fittingly, each item in the tableware range features artist Fung Ming Chip’s beautiful calligraphy relating poems of friendship, drinking and merry-making by the renowned poets Li Bai, Ch’eng Hao, Yuan Lie and Du Fu. 

The exquisite Chinese calligraphy on the Les Poèmes du Mandarin collection subtly evokes bubbles rising in a glass of champagne. This was then carefully re-interpreted by Hong Kong-based Marc & Chantal Design to create a sense of movement and water effects on the ceramic. The skill and dexterity of Hermès craftsmen are on full display in the rendering of the ink, which glistens as though still wet and just applied. 

The Krug Room accommodates a maximum of ten guests who enjoy pairings of exquisite Krug champagnes with the finest gourmet fare skilfully prepared by Executive Chef Uwe Opocensky. To mark the autumn launch of Les Poèmes du Mandarin, chef Uwe will create an exciting and innovative dégustation menu that will both intrigue and delight.

The range will be in use at The Krug Room from October when it will also be available for purchase in the USA, Belgium, Germany, France, Spain, Great Britain, Italy, Luxembourg, Japan and Indonesia. However, keen shoppers in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand will have a little longer to wait. Les Poèmes du Mandarin will be available at selected Hermès stores in these countries from early 2009.

About Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong
Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong is a true reflection of 21st -century luxury combined with Oriental heritage.  With an unbeatable location in the heart of Central this elegant hotel is renowned for its award-winning, personalised service delivered in intimate and well-appointed surroundings. Featuring spacious and luxurious guestrooms and suites, ten individual restaurants and bars, a Shanghainese-inspired holistic Spa, traditional barber, hair salon, fitness facility with skyline views and penthouse pool, Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong is a much loved home away from home for both guests and local residents alike. 

Reservations can be made by contacting the hotel directly on +852 2522 0111 or through Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group’s worldwide sales and reservations offices or the Group’s direct on-line reservations service at www.mandarinoriental.com/hongkong.

Notes to editors:
About Calligrapher Fung Ming Chip
Born in Guangdong China in 1951, Fung Ming Chip was raised in Hong Kong before moving to New York in 1977. Since 1986 he has divided his time among New York, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

The artist’s work is centred on calligraphy, considered in Chinese culture as one of the highest arts. Fung Ming Chip is one of a few who has been able to find a new language for this two thousand-year-old art; he invents without breaking tradition. Since the mid 1990s, Fung’s analysis of and re-engagement with the structure and materiality of calligraphy has led to his creation of more than one hundred new “script types”. With each script, Fung sometimes deconstructs the spatial arrangement of Chinese characters, sometimes collapses them, and sometimes re-focuses them. Throughout, the nucleus of his art-making has been an exploration of the possibilities for expanding or reshaping the time-and-space elements inherent in this unique art form that is at once visually progressive and literally narrative. 

About Krug
Since 1843, six generations of the Krug family have cultivated the markedly individual character of their exceptional champagne, showing that same single-mindedness and sense of purpose with which the founder, Johann-Joseph Krug, set out alone in pursuit of his objective of making a champagne with a taste all its own. Krug is an encounter, an experience, a revelation – and a range of five extraordinary champagnes: Krug Grande Cuvée, Krug Rosé, Krug Clos du Mesnil, Krug Vintage and Krug Collection.

About Hermès
A harness-maker when founded in Paris in 1837, then a saddle maker, Hermès established itself at 24, rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré in 1880. From there, it launched its highly successful product diversification at the dawn of the 20th century. This gave rise to the creation of numerous trademarks. Over time, the Kelly bag and the Chaîne d’ancre bracelet became emblematic objects, as did the silk scarf, which is known the world over for its rich colours and diverse designs. 

In 1984, Hermès made the natural transition from illustrator of silk to illustrator of porcelain with its first service, Pivoines. This was followed by other highly successful lines such as Toucans, Balcon du Guadalquivir and Cheval d’Orient. 

The Hermès name now appears on 14 different groups of products: Leather, Scarves, Ties, Men's and Women's Ready-to-Wear, Perfume, Watches, Diaries, Hats, Gloves, Footwear, Enamel, Art of Living, Tableware and Jewellery.

About Marc & Chantal Design
Established in Hong Kong in 1992, the creative studio is led by three founding partners, French designers Chantal Réchaussat and Marc Cansier, who both graduated in 1992 from the ESAG Penninghen in Paris, and Swiss designer Marc Brulhart, a graduate of the European School of Design in Milan. Since its inception the studio has been committed to acting as a bridge between East and West, working for both major Chinese clients and leading European luxury brands such as Hermès, the LVMH group and Swarovski. The studio is also well known for crossing disciplines in distinctive ways, blending interior and graphic design in one seamless experience. The Krug Room is a perfect example of this distinct blend of cultures and disciplines.