Happy birthday to the one and only Paul Poiret, the couturier, artist, iconoclast, and host extraordinaire who surely deserves his place as the greatest figure in the pre-World War I fashion world. Poiret's impressive vision of lush fabrics, rich colors, and bold prints created maximalist and joyful looks that continue to inspire designers and fashion lovers today. Despite his enormous success, he was unable to hold onto his fame and fortune and died in poverty.
Read MoreBorn on this day in 1930 in New York City, Ringgold created an impactful vision. For over 50 years, her art and activism have been at the vanguard of anti-racism and feminism.
Read MoreZandra Rhodes, the daughter of a fitter for a Parisian fashion house, was born and raised in England. Her specialization was printed textile design while studying at the Royal College of Art in London. Traditional British manufacturers deemed her rule-breaking bold prints and colours to be unconventional. She opened a shop with her partner Sylvia Ayton, called Fulham Road Clothes and started making dresses from her own printed fabric designs.
Read MoreThe fantastic floral silks of a prolific English pattern designer.
Born on this day in 1688 in Hartston, Leicestershire to a reverend and his wife, Anna Maria Garthwaite became one of the most famous English designers of her time. The fine silk designs of Anna Maria Garthwaite–when I have been lucky enough to see them in museums like the Victoria & Albert Museum– give me so much pleasure in their balanced, delicate renderings of flora and masterful use of color.
Read MoreHappy birthday to the “Mother” of interior design and one of America’s first woman interior and textile designers, Candace Wheeler. Born on March 24, 1827 (but often mis-dated March 27th), she grew up on a farm in Delhi, New York with her seven siblings. Wheeler’s life went through dramatic transformation: her early years were “a hundred years behind the time” in a strict Presbyterian household, but her latter years were spent in jazz-age New York City after decades of being “working woman”, paving the way for women in design.
Read MoreMerry Christmas! And Happy Birthday to Marion Dorn, a trail blazing print and graphics designer. She designed for many companies, creating textile designs, wall hangings, carpeting, rugs, wallpaper, graphics and more. She contributed to some of the best known interiors of the time including the Claridges, Berkeley of London, Savoy, the Orion and the Queen Mary. In the 1920s, she was dubbed “The Architect of Floors” in praise of her influential modern carpet designs. She raised the status of rugs with her modern designs; she is best known for her sculpted carpets and using batik techniques on rugs.
Read MoreHappy birthday to Josef Hoffmann, born on this date in 1870! Most known for his architecture, Hoffmann’s vast body of work includes furniture, glass, metalwork, porcelain, and textiles. Hoffmann’s main goal with his work was in unifying architecture with interior elements. He joined with Moser in 1903 to establish the Wiener Werkstätte (Vienna Workshop).
Read MoreThis master of lacquer was an Art Deco innovator.
Precious objects made with integrity, especially those embellished with beautiful pattern and color, always stop me in my tracks. The works of Jean Dunand— when I have been lucky enough to see them in museums like the Met or the Musée des Arts Decoratifs— have held me captivated.
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