In the slick, demanding world of New York City, the name Robert Metzger is synonymous with perfection in interior design. Conservatively flamboyant, Metzger has one credo: everything must be of the best available quality ... and comfortable. VIVE spoke with the designer in his New York apartment and discovered that this urbane gentleman is as elegant as the habitats he creates.

In New York, success is a palpable thing. The Big Apple worships success and New Yorkers are quick to embrace another idol. Talent is curted and feted, but if that talent is ephemeral, idols are discarded like yesterday's hot dog wrappers. To succeed in the world's most exciting Market Platz, it takes a demonstrable raw talent, finely honed to perfection, sheer courage - and a street-wise knowledge of what makes New York tick. Native-born New Yorker Robert Metzger understands his beloved but fickle city and his courtship of it has culminated in a happy-ever-after mutual love-match.

Inevitably, as Metzger's clientele grows, his reputation attracts scions of society, conglomerate and corporate clients, blue-blood aristocrats, theatrical and film luminaries, publishers ... People who have made their mark on New York and further afield and their counterparts overseas; people who demand the best of everything. They include American Express, the Architectural Digest, the late Henry Fonda and Elizabeth Taylor when she appeared on broadway in Noel Coward's 'Private lives'.