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AS TOLD TO MAX TROWBRIDGE INTENTION BEHIND URBAN ZEN. Urban Zen started as a center for change and was located at my husband's studio. My husband passed away from lung cancer (2001), and I felt there was nobody in the healthcare system caring for the patient. I had death all around me on so many different levels — so many friends of mine were sick with cancer at the time — and I realized that everyone was taking care of the disease, but nobody was taking care of the patient. So I instituted a 10-day forum at Urban Zen, at my husband's studio. I've been an advocate of yoga since I was a teenager, and when Steven was sick, I would have a yoga teacher visit the studio, and I'd have massage therapist visits, which helped him in his treatment. So through the tools of yoga, nutrition, aromatherapy, massage work and spiritual practices, a healing takes place. Out of that came the beginning of the Urban Zen Integrated Therapy program, UZIT. DEFINING UZIT. We trained nurses and doctors in yoga, reiki, aroma- therapy, nutrition and palliative care. We are the assistant to medical practitioners, working with the patient and the loved one. I think the only way to make a change in healthcare is connecting to the consumer, the patient, the family and the community. MISSION. To create a center for change to preserve cultures from around the world — in mind, body and spirit. It has to do with the spirit of a country; whether it's Bali or Haiti or Africa or anywhere, the soul of a place has wisdom. We wanted to act on what was missing in healthcare, which is where the care in healthcare is, then move forward to the future, which is education. THE URBAN ZEN LIFESTYLE. For the Urban Zen collection of clothes, my philosophy is: If I can't sleep in it, I don't want to know it. We've broken the calendar, so to speak, because I believe strongly in bringing the clothes in season. I don't ship fall clothes in May. I ship fall in fall, spring in spring, and that's it. INSPIRATION. I'm going to be very honest: If there's a problem I see, then there's a solution. I'm driven by problems. President Clinton has been one of my biggest inspirations for Urban Zen; my husband has been a huge inspiration for me, my girlfriends and everybody who has passed. I've traveled the world, and I'm constantly inspired. Bali is my inspiration, and always has been, and it brought me an understanding of how I could help Haiti. It's a formula for the rest of the developing countries … that there are limitations as artisans. They are creative people, so how do we access that creativity to make an income for them, which will in turn create a community. The only way you feel good is by helping another human being, and that's the most satisfying thing I've ever had in my lifetime. ARTISANS: JEWELRY, BAGS, HOME. We work with horn, embroidery and metal artisans. I'm about to start an artisan-schooling program in Haiti. I've trained four Haitians to become Urban Zen integrative therapists. We also work in an educational program and in schools, and we build creative departments. It's HEAD DONNA KARAN INSIDE The of D onna Karan debuts her memoir this September, 14 years after her husband, artist Stephen Weiss, died — a defining moment for the inspiration of Urban Zen, her label and lifestyle that mixes philanthropy and commerce, healthcare and holistic well-being. The red- brick Urban Zen store in New York's West Village is stocked with easy-to-wear, layered clothing synonymous with Karan's ethos, as well as artisan accessories from which a portion of proceeds benefits her foundation. Next door, Weiss' former studio is now a wellness center and showroom for Urban Zen Home, as well as home to Weiss' paintings, sculptures and spirit. Donna Karan "THE ONLY WAY YOU FEEL GOOD IS BY HELPING ANOTHER HUMAN BEING, AND THAT'S THE MOST SATISFYING THING I'VE EVER HAD IN MY LIFETIME." — DONNA KARAN Urban Zen collection Urban Zen collection Karan's home in the Hamptons, filled with Urban Zen Home furniture and accessories PAUL WARCHOL CHRISTINE MORDEN just so empowering. I want to build a bamboo school because of deforestation, like my friend John Hardy has done in Bali. A little school made of bamboo — a bamboo village, to grow bamboo and build. These are dreams I have — but dreams do come true, I hope. Someday in my lifetime if not the next lifetime … URBAN ZEN STORES. One is in Sag Harbor, one is in New York (West Village), and we have started to sell to a few specialty stores. One happens to be in your area, which is Forty Five Ten. I'm excited about that. URBAN ZEN HOME. You have to have a beanbag! I have a home in Turks & Caicos, and that's how the furniture line started. As with my clothes, my furniture follows the same rule: If I can't sleep in it, I don't want to know it — so the couches have beds. I have these wonderful huge dining tables. You can have them in every size, huge planks of one- of-a-kind pieces of wood that are beautiful. And then we have all the accessories from Haiti, which are fantastically affordable: tobacco-leaf and raku vases. GUILTY PLEASURE. Green juice and protein shakes. Kale and spinach are my favorite things in the world. I love any- thing green. I love juicing. I have a lot of recipes. I do it all: celery, cucumber, kale, spinach, ginger. HOMES IN NEW YORK, EAST HAMPTON AND TURKS & CAICOS. They're totally different. The city apartment is obviously work-related. The Hamptons is about my family; my favorite thing to do is to be with my family and my grandchildren. Turks & Caicos — there's a love story behind that. My husband and I redid our vows there, and I promised I'd build a place for all our children. THE MANY FACES OF DONNA. There are many me's. If you think of DKNY, it's about my family, the casual life, my daughter's friends when she was young. The Donna Karan Collection is more of an artistically inspired experience, and Urban Zen is a collection of clothes, sort of like my personal closet; it's about philanthropy and commerce together. Urban Zen, available by special order at Forty Five Ten. Urban Zen Aspen pop-up open through mid-April at 501 E. Dean St., Aspen, CO, 970.710.2961, urbanzen.com.