Miami designer René Ruiz made a name for himself with his elegant couture gowns worn by celebrities and glamorous fashionistas.
Now he is lending his talents to recovering patients at Miami Transplant Institute (an affiliation between Jackson Health System and the University of Miami Health System) creating designer hospital gowns.
Consulting with doctors, hospital staff and the patients themselves, Ruiz designed gowns with slits, snaps and pockets to accommodate easy and comfortable access to surgical incisions, ports and other medical equipment attached to the patient.
Ruiz’s “Jackson Blue” poplin gowns feature a JH (for Jackson Health) on the front and Ruiz’s signature red heart icon inside. The garment’s inside label, Legacy by RR, pays tribute to the gift of organ donation, Ruiz says.
The recovery gowns are practical, versatile and utilitarian, but Ruiz’s aesthetic is evident in the details like the soft lines with marine blue piping.
“It’s also about the architecture of the design,” Ruiz says. “Everything has to be the way I design women’s clothes.”
If Ruiz’s compassion stems from the example of his family struggling in Cuba and giving of themselves to others in desperate times, his design inspiration comes from vibrant, sultry Miami, the city that embraced the 17-year-old refugee and opened up experiences and opportunities to him. Ruiz earned a bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design from the International Fine Arts College in Miami in 1990.
“Everything about Miami inspires me,” says Ruiz, “all the energy that has always been in the city since the 80s, from ‘Miami Vice,’ to the Versace era to Art Basel, which transformed Miami. The perception of Miami in the world and in the fashion business has changed. It’s one of the few places in the world you have all these different communities thriving. There’s something really special about this area and what it is becoming.”
From his atelier in North Miami, Ruiz is not only building his René by RR brand with a new collection, he’s working on getting more Legacy gowns to other hospitals, including a line for children. To date, 4,260 gowns have been delivered to Jackson.
“I definitely want to continue to do this, says Ruiz. “It’s very rewarding to see the patients, how comfortable, how happy they are.”