CULTURE

Vanessa Rano and Michael Chow’s Wedding Was Over-the-Top and Celeb Packed

The restaurateur hosted his fourth wedding over the weekend.


M + V - 2.9.19
Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images

John Mayer may not have been at the wedding of Vanessa Rano and Michael Chow this weekend, but that doesn’t mean it was lacking in luster. Quite the opposite, really, and quite literally: On Saturday, the restaurateur (of Mr. Chow’s fame) and artist married Rano, his girlfriend of nearly two years, in a ceremony in Vernon, California, filled with flashing lights, a ceiling covered in star-shaped mylar balloons, and a performance by Wyclef Jean.

The wedding itself, which took place at the First Congregational Church of Los Angeles, was Chow’s fourth—he was previously married to the Vogue stylist and former model Grace Coddington; to Tina Chow, with whom he has two children, China and Maximilian; and to Eva Chow, with whom he has a daughter, Asia, and from whom he split in 2017. Per Page Six, Chow and Rano met in an elevator; she was studying for a graduate degree in social work at the time.

For the occasion, they gathered their friends at Chow’s studio in Vernon, California, according to the Instagram of the antiques dealer Jao Fai Chen. In addition to Chow’s own art—some of which he painted in honor of the wedding and Rano’s 30th birthday—the space was adorned with white flowers from the “artistic director” and “flower whisperer” Jeff Leatham, who also designed the lobby of the Four Seasons Hotel Georges V, in Paris, and the Four Seasons Los Angeles. There was also a sculpture in the likeness of Chow himself, with which several guests (including Robert Huizenga, a doctor whose credits include consulting on The Biggest Loser and who got the bride’s name wrong—calling her Virginia, not Vanessa) took the opportunity to pose.

[https://www.instagram.com/p/Bttp5sonqcX/]

At the reception, which kicked off in the evening on Saturday, attendees watched a traditional Chinese lion dance as well as what looks to be a video compilation of the ceremony itself. There was tango-ing. There was other dancing. Per Huizenga’s Instagram, the cakes—of which there were several, towering over the guests—were from Ladurée. There was a disco ball. There was a screen at the front of the spacious hall, the letters “V+M” radiating out. Catering, naturally, was by Mr. Chow.

An invitation sent out ahead of the wedding promised reception guests including the actress Anjelica Huston; the artists Ed Ruscha, William Eggleston’s son William Eggleston III, and Lauren Greenfield; Sting’s daughters Fuschia and Mickey; the director Gus Van Sant; the models Lauren Hutton and Heidi Klum; and the designer Vera Wang. According to a post release, attendees did include Klum and Van Sant, as well as Corey Feldman and Connie Britton. The actress Bai Ling was also extremely present on Instagram. See more of the highlights of Michael Chow and Vanessa Rano’s wedding, below.