Salvacion Lim-Higgins (January 28, 1920 – September 15, 1990), also known professionally as Slim, was a Filipino

fashion designer Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion in ...

known for her

haute couture ''Haute couture'' (; ; French for 'high sewing', 'high dressmaking') is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design that is constructed by hand from start-to-finish. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, Paris became th ...

. She is considered by many Filipino culture critics to be the mother of the modern ''

terno Terno (English: " heYoung"), is a Polish Romani music collective founded in 1953. Originally known as ''Kcham'', Terno was founded by Romani musician Edward Dębicki Edward Dębicki (born 4 March 1935) is a Polish Romani poet, musician and comp ...

''. In 2022, she was named a

National Artist of the Philippines The Order of National Artists of the Philippines (Filipino: ''Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining ng Pilipinas'') is an order bestowed by the Philippines on Filipinos who have made significant contributions to the development of Philippin ...

, being the second fashion designer to receive the distinction following her contemporary Ramon Valera.

Early life and education

Salvacion Lim-Higgins was born on January 28, 1920, to Luis Samson Lim Katiam and Margarita Navera Diaz. Her father was a Chinese immigrant who was involved in the

ship chandler A ship chandler is a retail dealer who specializes in providing supplies or equipment for ships. Synopsis For traditional sailing ships, items that could be found in a chandlery include sail-cloth, rosin, turpentine, tar, pitch, linseed oil, ...

industry while her mother was a housewife. Salvacion had six other siblings. A native of Legazpi, Lim went to Manila to study fine arts at the

University of Santo Tomas The University of Santo Tomas (also known as UST and officially as the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, Manila) is a private, Catholic research university in Manila, Philippines. Founded on April 28, 1611, by Spanish friar Miguel ...

(UST) and aimed to be a painter. She had

Botong Francisco Carlos Modesto "Botong" Villaluz Francisco (November 4, 1912 – March 31, 1969) was a Filipino muralist from Angono, Rizal. Early life Francisco was a most distinguished practitioner of mural painting for many decades and best known for his hist ...

as her mentor in UST. Her studies was disrupted by

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. She would later enroll at the Traphagen School of Design in New York before returning to the Philippines in 1952.

Career

led her to pursue a more practical career in fashion design. After the end of the war, while waiting for school to resume, she sent sketches of her fashion design to the ''

Manila Times ''The Manila Times'' is the oldest extant English-language newspaper in the Philippines. It is published daily by The Manila Times Publishing Corp. (formerly La Vanguardia Publishing Corporation) with editorial and administrative offices at 2/F ...

'', and began going by the trade name "Slim". Along with her elder sister Purificacion and family friend Consuelo Barberan, Slim would set up a fashion design shop in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

in 1947 which later moved along to what is now

Taft Avenue Taft Avenue ( fil, Abenida Taft; es, Avenida Taft) is a major road in the south of Metro Manila. It passes through three cities in the metropolis: Manila, Pasay and Parañaque. The road was named after the former Governor-General of the Philippin ...

. Slim, would be heavily influenced by

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

culture of the 1950s and 1960s and would frequent Europe and New York to study fashion collections, learn techniques, and buy

designer clothes Designer clothing is expensive luxury clothing considered to be high quality and haute couture for the general public, made by, or carrying the label of, a well-known fashion designer. Brands Designer clothing is not always created by the foun ...

to further improve her craft. In 1960, Slim and Purificacion founded the Slim's Fashion and Art school, the first fashion school in the Philippines. Slim briefly retired to become a housewife after getting married in the 1960s but came out of retirement in the mid-1970s. She would open her second shop along

Amorsolo Street Amorsolo Street is a minor north-south roadway that runs parallel to Chino Roces Avenue in Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines. The street starts inside Dasmariñas Village, continues north to San Lorenzo Village with some discontinuities, and into ...

Illness and death

Lim would be diagnosed with

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

in the mid-1980s despite being a non-smoker. She died on September 15, 1990.

Legacy

Lim would be known for reinventing the ''

''. She was posthumously recognized as a

in June 2022.

Personal life

Lim was married to Hubert Higgins, an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...

in the Philippines, with whom they had two children. They married in 1960 when Lim was 40 years old and Higgins was 47.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lim-Higgins, Salvacion 1920 births 1990 deaths University of Santo Tomas alumni Filipino fashion designers National Artists of the Philippines Filipino people of Chinese descent People from Legazpi, Albay