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André Company and Creators Studio Fashion Prints The André and Creators Studio agencies produced fashion prints, which were sold by subscription to dress manufacturers around the world, who in turn created clothing based on them. Our collection of prints (9 cubic feet) dates from 1938 to 1972. Architecture Illustration Scrapbook The Architecture Illustration Scrapbook measures 16" by 20 1/2", with a binding of 3" in width. It contains 444 images, which range in date from 1790 to 1909. These depict dwellings and structures of all kinds, including thatched huts, barns, churches, palaces, world's fair pavilions, Victorian homes, and commercial buildings. Although most of the pictures were produced in Europe or the United States, architecture from around the world is shown. Dan Arje (1923-93) was a designer and display director for Bonwit Teller. He also decorated the Christmas Tree at the White House during the Lyndon B. Johnson administration. His papers span the 1960s and 1970s. Stanley Barrows (1914-95) graduated from Parsons in 1940 and taught at the school from 1946 to 1969, specializing in the history of interior design. He was a mentor to several generations of notable designers. The collection (2 cubic feet) includes scrapbooks, publications, and correspondence representing Barrows' career and the history of the school's Interior Design Department. Bess Bernard Interior Design Renderings Bess Bernard began her career as an interior designer as an employee of Melanie Kahane (PSD 1931). In 1960, she established her own company, Bernard Designs International, Ltd., and has since done projects for both commercial and residential spaces, including the Waldorf Astoria hotel and the apartment for the president of Mitsubishi. Her work has also ranged from Cadillac car showrooms, to barrier-free apartments for stroke victims. James Fegan, who graduated from Parsons in 1951, has served as assistant designer for many years. Bernard's interior designs blend a traditional and a modern aesthetic. They often feature abstract paintings, varied seating, picture windows, and ample storage space. The Kellen Archives
Center has 42 watercolor or pencil renderings that show Bernard's interiors,
circa 1960s-80s. They were produced by various artists; one, for example,
is signed "Schwabe," and another, "M. Munroe III."
Inventory (numbering and descriptions provided by Bess Bernard): 1. Friar's club,
dining room A leader in fashion illustration, René Bouché (1905-63) taught at Parsons in 1947. We hold 58 of his sketches. Tom Brigance (1913-90) was a well-known fashion designer, who specialized in women's swimsuits and sportswear. During his peak, in the 1950s, he was the exclusive designer at Frank Gallant. He won the fashion industry's Coty Award in 1953. (PSD 1934) Interior designer Bruce Buttfield (1897-1969) made his mark in the 1930s by creating furniture and rooms inspired by Victorian design. In 1931, he designed the interior of the original Whitney Museum building on 8th Street in Manhattan. After graduating from Parsons in 1973, Zack Carr (1945-2000) worked for B. Altman and then for fashion designer Donald Brooks. In 1975, he went to Calvin Klein, where he was a leading force in creating the clean look of the women's collections. He left that company in 1984 to start his own line, in Turin, Italy. In 1988, he returned to Klein, and expanded his influence beyond women's clothing to include the men's collections, accessories, jeanswear, underwear, home furnishings, and advertising. He continued to work for Klein until his death. We hold 4 cubic feet of news clippings, original sketches, idea books, scrapbooks, runway photographs, and publicity books, documenting the career of this designer, 1970s-2000. Mariette Cassels compiled eight notebooks while touring France and studying in the Parsons program in Paris, 1930-31. They contain photographs, postcards, and clippings showing furniture and decorative moldings of various styles, including Louis XIV, Victorian, and Modern. A single notebook contains lecture notes on such subjects as "History of Art," "Romanesque and Gothic Sculpture," "The Evolution of French Tapestry," "History of Furniture," and "Printed Fabrics." Interior designer Dero Darwin, Jr., graduated with honors from the Interior Design Department at Parsons in 1964. We received from him all of the work he produced as a student. This collection provides a complete record of the Interior Design curriculum in the early 1960s. Carl Erickson (Eric) Fashion Illustrations Carl Erickson (1891-1988) was a major fashion illustrator whose work appeared in, for example, Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. In 1964, Parsons School of Design hosted a major retrospective of his work, of which we hold a portion. Fashion Design Sketch Collection This collection consists of original sketches by such fashion designers as: Joseph Abboud, Hubert de Givenchy, Tommy Hilfiger, and Marc Jacobs. The Fashion Print Scrapbooks total eighteen in number. The cover of each scrapbook measures 16" by 20 1/2," with the average binding between 3" and 4" in width. The scrapbooks contain a total of over 10,000 illustrations produced between 1805 and 1913, the majority which are French. There are, however, some representative illustrations from the 1880s and 1890s that were produced in Germany, England, and the United States. In the twentieth-century, illustrations from countries other than France become more common. All types of clothing are depicted, including the wardrobe of men, women, and children. In many cases, a fully outfitted model is shown posed in the environment appropriate for the garment--whether it be a home, a ballroom, a street, or another setting--presenting us with a context for the clothing. Some images focus on specific types of apparel (such as corsets or bedclothes) or on accessories (such as hats, belts, scarves, or fans); others show specialized clothing (such as ecclesiastic, livery, or theatrical wear). Of great importance for research purposes, most every fashion picture is clearly dated. In addition, many illustrations have explanatory captions. The fashion prints include engravings, lithographs, and half-tone photographs. Many were originally issued as portfolio prints; others were taken from books and periodicals, such as Graham's Magazine and Godey's Lady's Book and Magazine. There are numerous pictures in vivid color, from hand-painted engravings to chromolithographs. The illustrations range in size from 2" by 2" to 15" by 20." Within each scrapbook, the images are arranged in chronological order. The content of each scrapbook is as follows: Fashions, 1805-1913
This collection includes brochures, publicity kits, photographs, and "look books," issued by companies such as Joseph Abboud, Jane Justin, and Narciso Rodriguez, 1960s-2000s. Fashion Runway Slide and Videotape Collection The fashions of such designers as Jean-Paul Gaultier, Cynthia Rowley, Vivienne Westwood, and Yohji Yamamoto are here represented in slides and videotapes of their runway shows, 1990s-2000s. Bea Feitler (1938-82) graduated from Parsons in 1959 with a degree in Graphic Arts and Advertising. In 1963, she became the art director for Harper's Bazaar. Then, in 1972, she assumed the same post for Ms., helping Gloria Steinem to create that magazine. Six years later, she became a consulting art director for Condé Nast Publications, and in that position, she developed Self. Later, she served as design director for Straight Arrow Publications and Rolling Stone magazine. She was behind some of the most memorable iconic images of the Beatles and Rolling Stones, and designed numerous books, posters, and costumes before passing away at the age of 44. The Feitler Papers include correspondence, clippings, magazines, and artwork. In addition, there are a number of original photographs by noted photographers who submitted their work to Feitler when she was an art director. In the 1940s, when women were not an important presence in magazine illustration, Lorraine Fox (1929-80) began her work in this area. Her reputation peaked in the 1960s, and she taught at Parsons from 1965 to 1976. Our holdings take the form of magazine tearsheets and large-format transparencies of her artwork. Born in 1924, Galanos grew up in New Jersey, and attended New York's Traphagen School of Fashion from 1942 until 1943. After leaving school, he briefly worked for the important American fashion designer Hattie Carnegie and then for the costume department of Columbia Pictures. Galanos traveled to Paris in 1947 to train under couturier Robert Piguet. When he returned to New York the following year, he took a position with Davidow, but left in 1949 because he did not share the firm's conservative approach to ready-to-wear clothing design. In 1951, Galanos moved to Los Angeles where he launched his own business, Galanos Originals. Galanos' career took off when he showed his work on the New York runways in 1953. The following year, he won the Neiman-Marcus Award, as well as his first Coty, the ultimate honor for fashion designers. His women's clothing was so well regarded that he again received the Coty in 1956. For his overall body of work, Galanos was inducted into the Coty Hall of Fame in 1959 and received the Council of Fashion Designers of America Lifetime Achievement Award in 1985. He retired in 1998. With a reputation for exquisite workmanship, Galanos maintained the loyalty of his clients, who came to expect fine details such as silk dress linings and intricate hand-done embroidery. His trademark was the imaginative use of chiffon. Although most of his clothing was ready-to-wear, it reached the heights of couture. The holdings of the Kellen Archives Center consists of material relating to Jimi Designs, a short-lived company James Galanos managed with Mary Scourby in 1950. Returning to the state of his upbringing, the designer established the company in New Jersey. We have eleven fashion sketches accompanied by assorted business correspondence, including sales receipts and business cards, which help to place the drawings in context. This gift is significant because it fills a gap in the chronology of Galanos' career. Biographical essays on the designer, such as those featured in New York Fashion and Contemporary Fashion, standard fashion reference sources, skip over his activities in 1950. Jimi Designs, established in that year, was the first company which featured Galanos' creations marketed under his name, so his biography is not complete without it. The Center is a particularly appropriate repository for this donation since Galanos was a critic at Parsons from 1962 to 1968. Francis Geck (1900- ) graduated from Parsons in 1924 with a degree in Costume and Stage Design and then taught Interior Decoration at Parsons Paris from 1925 to 1927. He undertook an array of professional projects. For example, at the beginning of his career, in the 1920s, he produced sets and costumes for silent films; later work included designs for yacht interiors. Our holdings of Geck material includes correspondence, photographs, publications, and sketches. Some of the most notable items are: Geck's student sketches and autobiographical booklets describing his experiences at Parsons, interior-decoration class portfolios published by PSD Paris and PSD Italy, flyers for special courses on Dynamic Symmetry and other subjects, and Frank Alvah Parsons' manuscript instructions to faculty. As a freelance photographer, Charles Gerli documented many important fashion shows--including those of Dior, Givenchy, Krizia, Lanvin, and Prada--for Elle and Harper's Bazaar. Our collection of his work dates from 1991 to 1992. Adam and Sophie Gimbel Collection Adam Gimbel (1893-1969) was president of Saks Fifth Avenue from 1926 to 1969. Sophie Gimbel (1896-1981), his wife, was the designer for the custom salon at Saks. The Kellen Archives Center has assembled publications, clippings, and photographs related to the couple, after whom the library at Parsons is named. Givenchy Nouvelle Boutique Showroom Books The Kellen Archives Center holds showroom books for the Givenchy Nouvelle Boutique of New York City, 1972-74. Ruth Andrée Golbin (1923- ), who graduated from Parsons in 1943, has had a long career as a painter and illustrator. We hold examples of her drawings and book illustrations. Jeremiah Goodman Watercolor Renderings Jeremiah Goodman, born in 1923, studied at both Parsons and the Franklin School of Professional Art in New York City in the 1940s. He originally wanted to pursue set design, but Franklin instructor David Payne (PSD 1932), a well-known illustrator of interiors, encouraged Goodman to follow in his footsteps. Going on to become a much sought-after artist, Goodman worked with such legendary interior designers as Eleanor Le Maire (PSD 1920), William Pahlmann (PSD 1930), and Angelo Donghia (PSD 1952). In addition, Greta Garbo, Richard Rodgers, John Gielgud, and Mary Martin, among other celebrities, commissioned him to document their homes. His renderings have appeared in Vogue and House and Garden, and in 1987, Interior Design honored him with its Hall of Fame Award. We hold ten watercolor renderings, dating from the 1970s and the 1980s. These depict subjects ranging from a design proposal for Central Park; to the restoration of the Melbourne, Australia, Stock Exchange; to rooms showcasing the textiles of J.P. Stevens and Company. Fred Greenhill Fashion Illustrations After graduating from Parsons in 1950, Fred Greenhill (1930- ) went on to work as an illustrator for the advertising divisions of several of the foremost department stores in the country. At Neiman Marcus in the 1950s, he produced fashion sketches daily under rigorous deadlines. His output was so outstanding that Stanley Marcus praised him as the department store's finest retail illustrator. Then, as the primary artist for Saks Fifth Avenue in the 1960s and early 1970s, Greenhill created the store's sophisticated image in countless New York Times advertisements. From 1974 to 1988, he was associated with Lord & Taylor, where he co-designed the long-stemmed rose that continues to be the company's trademark. The Kellen Archives Center has approximately 500 fashion illustrations by Fred Greenhill, 1950s-80s. Edith D'Errecalde Hadamard Papers Fashion designer Edith D'Errecalde Hadamard (1905 2002) was a critic lecturer at Parsons in 1969 70. She studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris, before immigrating to the United States in 1939. Once in this country, she worked briefly for Charles James, recognized as the first American couturier, and then, in 1941, was hired by another celebrated designer, Mainbocher, whom she assisted for eleven years. Hadamard was in charge of Mainbocher's workroom and directed many of the fittings, the Duchess of Windsor and actress Mary Martin being two of the best known clients. She also created some original designs under Mainbocher's name. For example, as part of his project to outfit military and nurse personnel during the 1940s, she designed uniforms for Public Health Nursing agencies. In 1951, Hadamard started her own sportswear company, specializing in tweeds. It was incorporated as Maxmil two years later. Evan Picone then hired her in 1955 to develop skirts and blouses to supplement its line of pants. In 1959, she became fashion director for Cohama. During her fifth year there, she revolutionized the world of sportswear by introducing clothing that made innovative use of stretch fabric's full potential. After leaving Cohama in 1974, she continued to work in fashion through the decade, focusing on the creation of sweaters and dress patterns. The Hadamard Papers take the form of photographs, original sketches, newsclippings, advertisements, press kits, company newsletters, correspondence, and manuscripts for articles and speeches, 1940s - 1981. Dorothy Haon (1898-1995), attended Parsons in 1923-24. She frequently traveled to Paris to study French fashion. On her return to the United States, she created clothing based on the styles she encountered overseas. The Dorothy Haon Papers date to the 1940s and 1950s and include sketches and business records. A publicity agent for fashion designers, Margaret Hodge (PSD 1945) produced promotional material for their work. She masterminded campaigns to sell clothing lines inspired by such films as Funny Girl, Lawrence of Arabia, and The Man Who Would Be King, 1945-75. We have 2.2 cubic feet of Hodge materials, including press kits, photographs, and advertisements relating to the campaigns that she organized. Interior designer Eleanor Horst (1892-1995), who graduated from Parsons in 1936, maintained an office in New York City, from which base she undertook design projects throughout the greater metropolitan area. At the age of 82, she received much acclaim for organizing the interior renovation of the First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Greenwich, Connecticut. The papers of Eleanor Horst include photographs, renderings, and manuscript materials documenting her career as an interior designer. Born in 1912, Lea Hoyt received a degree in Graphics from Parsons in 1933. She later established a career in both graphic and textile design, and continued her work until her death in 1998. The Hoyt Papers include materials from the designer's Parsons years, most notably an advertising sketch she did for R.H. Macy's. Her professional graphic work is represented by designs for, among other things, napkins, paper plates, and greeting cards; her textile work is documented by slides, photographs, and preliminary sketches. A well-known name in contemporary fashion design, Donna Karan (1948- ) attended Parsons in 1968 and 1969 and received an honorary degree from the school in 1987. She has been a visiting critic at Parsons since 1975. Her work and career are represented in the Kellen Archives Center by photographs, advertisements, videotapes, films, sketches, and press kits. Margery Knight (1906-94) taught figure drawing and fashion illustration at Parsons from 1946 to 1969. Her sketchbooks, from the 1960s, display her own command of these disciplines. Charles Lemaire was one of the twentieth century's most prominent costume designers for stage and screen. He began his career in New York in the 1920s by designing for such revues as the Ziegfield Follies and for such films as The Heart of a Siren, 1925. From 1943 until 1949, he was chief costume designer for the motion picture studio Twentieth Century Fox. In the 1950s, he established his own salon, where he took on private commissions and continued to design for films. Lemaire worked on over 200 motion pictures and was instrumental in establishing the costume design category at the annual awards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Honored with fourteen Oscar nominations himself, he won the award for All About Eve, 1950; The Robe, 1953; and Love is a Many-Splendored Thing, 1955. The Kellen Archives Center holds thirteen Lemaire sketches, including work for the Earl Carroll Vanities, 1924-30; a design for a film, possibly The Robe, 1953; and drawings for private clients, such as Virginia Zanuck, wife of studio head Darryl F. Zanuck, 1950s. After graduating from Columbia University in 1927, Seymour Lipton (1903-86), a self trained New York artist, began to experiment with sculpture. By the time of his first group show in 1933, he had developed an expressionist and social realist style based on the human form, using wood, plaster, and stone as his media. His themes, focused around social injustice, included poverty, racism, and class struggle. Lipton's sculptures became increasingly abstract after 1945, with inspiration coming from such sources as Aztec and Mayan art and natural and mythological imagery. His primary medium now became sheet metal, and he pioneered modern techniques of working directly with it to produce artistic forms. In the 1950s, he reached the peak of his success, with his work exhibited in the Museum of Modern Art's "Twelve Americans" exhibition. Among his many commissions was a piece entitled "Archangel," for Philharmonic Hall at New York's Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in 1964. It was in the 1960s, though, that his work began to lose its popularity due to the rise of minimalism. Lipton continued to exhibit into the 1970s; a solo show, for example, was mounted at Cornell University in 1973. His sculptures are held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the Hirshorn Museum, Washington, D.C.; and the Albright Knox Gallery, Buffalo, New York, among others. The Kellen Archives Center holds twenty sketches in black crayon by Lipton representing ideas for sculptures. Roy Little graduated from Parsons in 1949 and went on to become the head designer for the renowned French couturier Jacques Fath, from 1950 until 1957. He then returned to Parsons in 1958 as an instructor, remaining in that position until 1979. The nine Roy Little sketchbooks held by the Kellen Archives Center all represent the designer's work for Fath. With a practical approach to fashion design, Claire McCardell (1905-58) was a pivotal figure in the creation of American ready-to-wear clothing. In 1928, she graduated from Parsons and later taught there. Now, her working sketches, from 1931 to 1958, are housed in 124 sketchbooks at the Kellen Archives Center. Representative sketches photocopied from the collection can be seen in A Sampling of the Fashion Sketches in the Claire McCardell Sketchbooks, 1931-1959 which is available from the Adam and Sophie Gimbel Library, Parsons. This volume serves as a guide and introduction to the collection. Harry Marinsky Interior Design Watercolors Harry Marinsky (1909- ) began his career as an artist in 1934 making costumes and papier mâchè masks for a dance recital at New York City's Guild Theatre. However, he soon turned to the watercolor illustration of interiors, a specialization in which he became important. As of 1935, he served four years as the art director for Country Life and American Home, producing renderings of interiors for the magazines' covers. His work in watercolor peaked in the 1950s and 1960s when he was often commissioned by publications such as the Herald Tribune, House and Garden, House Beautiful and Woman's Day. Marinsky has also had success in other media. His sculptures have been widely exhibited, the first show taking place in New York City in 1943. Additionally, Marinsky served as a designer for the White House during President Richard Nixon's administration. In 1969, he designed a rug for the Oval Office, helped to redecorate the office itself, and completely redesigned a room in the Executive Building. In 1972, Marinsky left the United States permanently for Pietrasanta, Italy, where he currently resides and produces bronze sculptures. The Kellen Archives Center holds 70 interior design watercolors and drawings by Marinsky. These works evidence a broad artistic style that draws upon various cultural influences, uses rich colors, and is attuned to detail. Here follows an inventory of the collection. Each entry begins with a description of the image. Parenthetical material appears on the actual item. Bracketed material is supplied. Box 1.1-H 1. Bathroom with grey
floor and pink bathtub Box 1.2-H 36. Formal living
room looking into dining room with green sofa, marble coffee table, beige
rug Box 1.3-I (MP1-I) Gallery Catalogs folder: The Sculpture of Harry Marinsky, Hammer Galleries, New York, 1982, and Harry Marinsky: Recent Sculpture, Hammer Galleries, New York, March 8-26, 1988. Publications folder: Hersey, Jean, with illustrations by Harry Marinsky. The Woman's Day Book of House Plants (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1963). File Drawer 1.4-A (MP2-A) 65. Department store
with row of women's clothes and a mannequin in a pink dress Born in 1908, Lyman Martin graduated from Parsons in 1939 and then took a position with Thedlow, the prestigious interior design firm of New York. Soon thereafter, he was called to serve in the United States Air Force. After his discharge three and a half years later, he returned to the company, where he created interiors, produced watercolor renderings of proposed and finished projects, and designed rugs and painted murals for clients. In 1969, Charlotte Hardy, Thedlow's founder, stepped down and named Martin the new president of the company, a position he retained until it closed in 1979. Retiring to Atlanta, Georgia, he continued to take on occasional projects before his death in 2003 at the age of 95. Found in the Martin Papers are student work, news clippings, press releases, exhibition catalogs, reference files, sketchbooks, maquettes of interiors, and renderings and photographs of rooms and individual pieces of furniture, 1930s - 60s. Dora Mathieu Portrait Sketches Dora Mathieu (1909-80) taught drawing in the Parsons Fashion Illustration Department from 1964 to 66 and specialized in sketching portraits of notable designers. Here follows a list of the Mathieu portraits (along with dates of rendering) held by the Kellen Archives Center: Stella
Brooks, 1968 In 1979, the well-known furniture company Knoll established an in-house graphics department, headed by Harold Matossian (PSD 1968). The designer continued his association with the company--where he produced invitations, brochures, stationery, and catalogs--until 1994. The Kellen Archives Center holds examples of each type of item. Back
to top Esta Nesbitt (1918-75) produced fashion illustrations for such publications as Harper's Bazaar, Mademoiselle, and the New York Times Magazine. She was an instructor at Parsons from 1964 to 1974, and the work held by the Kellen Archives Center roughly spans those same years. Norman Norell (1900-72) was the first American fashion designer to compete successfully with French couture. His talent was recognized when he received the first Coty American Fashion Critics Award, in 1943. In 1956, he was inducted into the Coty Hall of Fame. He taught at Parsons from 1943 to 1972. Norell's papers include original sketches, photographs, clippings, awards, and scrapbooks. A noted interior designer, William Odom (PSD 1910) served as both an instructor at Parsons (1912-1942) and president of school (1930-1942). His design philosophy emphasized symmetry and classical motifs. The Kellen Archives Center has assembled articles and photographs documenting Odom's career. It also holds the designer's collection of book endpapers. The audiocassette interviews held by the Kellen Archives Center document the lives and careers of important designers and artists who have a connection with Parsons. Among those individuals represented in the collection are: Stanley Barrows Fashion designer Mildred Orrick (1906-94) graduated Parsons in 1928 and went on to have a wide-ranging career. She produced clothing designs for Natasha Rambova, wife of Rudolph Valentino, in the 1920s; and costume designs for Norman Bel Geddes, the theatre producer and director, in the 1920s and 1930s. In addition, Orrick designed "miniature people" for the Futurama exhibition of the New York World's Fair of 1939. She later became an illustrator for Harper's Bazaar. In 1957, when her former Parsons-classmate Claire McCardell became ill and was no longer able to design for Townley Frocks, Orrick took over for her, continuing in that position for three years. She was an instructor at Parsons from 1947 to 1962. The bulk
of the Orrick materials held by the Kellen Archives Center consists of
the designer's sketches, 1920s-1950s. Frank Alvah Parsons Collection Frank Alvah Parsons was an instructor and administrator at the New York School of Art (later, the New York School of Fine and Applied Art) from 1904 until his death in 1930. In 1910, he became the school's director. Under Parsons' leadership, the school gained in stature. He saw the links between art education and the world of industry, and subsequently instituted programs at the school in graphic design, fashion design, and interior design--thereby creating the first full professional departments in these areas, in the country. In 1941, the school was renamed Parsons School of Design, in honor of Frank Alvah Parsons' contributions. His theories of design also influenced the teachings of other schools around the country, his textbooks forming an essential part of design curricula. The Frank Alvah Parsons Collection includes correspondence, photographs, clippings, lecture notes, and publications. A group of obituaries trace his overall career. Parsons Alumni Association Collections Active from the 1920s
to the 1960s, the Parsons Alumni Association assembled a large collection
of materials documenting the careers of the school's graduates. This collection
includes correspondence, publications, and photographs. Materials gathered
from class reunions held after 1970 supplement these earlier records.
In addition, a set of scrapbooks assembled by the Alumni Association supplies an overview of the school's history. Spanning the years 1926 to 1969, these ten volumes contain clippings that deal not only with alumni, but also with the activities of students, faculty, and the school itself. The volumes of the scrapbooks are titled as follows: 1. Years 1926-47 Parsons Institutional Collections The Kellen Archives Center has extensive materials relating to the history of Parsons, as far back as its beginnings in 1896 as the Chase School. The holdings include administrative and departmental records, school catalogs, periodicals, publications, exhibition catalogs, event flyers, commencement and fashion show programs, class lists, posters, scrapbooks, newspaper clippings, photographs, films, videotapes, and audiocassettes. Within the administrative and departmental records can be found materials related to Parsons faculty and other associates. For example, we have the work of graphic design legend Cipe Pineles during her years as director of publications for Parsons, as well as classroom photographs featuring notable instructors such as Eleanor McMillen Brown, Perry Ellis, and Philip Johnson. Examples of student work are also included within departmental records. We have projects completed by a number of students--such as William Pahlmann (PSD 1930) and Isaac Mizrahi (PSD 1982)--who went on to have distinguished careers. For Mariette Cassels and Ina Dell Marvin (PSD 1931), Dero Darwin, Jr. (PSD 1964), Sunbeam Randall (PSD 1951), and others, we have all the materials they produced as students. Our collection of student publications takes the form of books, magazines, and pamphlets. These include Inside Out (1972), Bread (1973), Since We Were Born (1974), Cheap Eats (1975), New York City People Directory and 1977 Desk Diary (1976), Parsons Iron-On Art (1978), Pieces (1984), Faux Pas (1987), Pink (1987-89), and Bad Dog (1990). The papers of John Russo (PSD 1942) include examples of his whimsical graphics which were featured in many Parsons publications, including flyers, posters, and magazine covers. He taught at the school for many years, from 1946 to 1985. Saks Fifth Avenue Publicity Materials The
Saks Fifth Avenue Publicity Materials, in 72 volumes, include press releases,
photographs, and newspaper Adolfo Using typographic blocks as his medium, artist Albert Schiller (1899-1970) created unusual and beautiful figurative images. In 1976, Parsons exhibited his work. The Kellen Archives Center holds 35 of the images that appeared in this show, as well as supplemental material documenting his career. Herbert Sondheim Fashion Business Scrapbooks Herbert Sondheim (1895-1966), who taught at Parsons in 1946, ran a dressmaking business which produced affordable versions of high-end fashion. The Kellen Archives Center has his Business Scrapbooks, totaling nineteen in number. Their covers measure 19" by 23", with bindings averaging 2" in width. Two of the scrapbooks--containing clippings, photographs, and correspondence--are devoted to Sondheim's dressmaking business during the years 1946 and 1947. The remaining seventeen scrapbooks hold fashion drawings used as templates for the Sondheim dresses. These drawings, many of which are hand-colored, date from the 1920s to the 1940s and depict the work of Vionnet, Chanel, Molyneux, and other noted designers of the period. Walter Stein, who taught at Parsons from 1973 to 1983, has had a career as a painter and illustrator. The Kellen Archives Center has his illustrations for the book For Love of Her: Poems by Emily Dickinson (1974). Eugene Paul Ullman, born in 1877, was a noted American Impressionist painter of the early twentieth century. Around 1897, Ullman studied under the famed William Merritt Chase at the Chase School, predecessor to Parsons. By 1901, he was teaching at the school. In 1903, he moved to Paris, where he briefly joined James Abbott McNeil Whistler's atelier. As an expatriate, he soon was receiving major awards for his work and was elected a member of the Société des Beaux-Arts, a sign of his acceptance into French art circles. In 1914, he curated an exhibition at the American Art Association in Paris that helped promote the radical paintings of Henri Matisse, who was having a hard time finding gallery sponsorship for his work. Visitors to Ullman's studio included Gertrude Stein and Alice Toklas, Pablo Picasso, and Juan Gris. In fact, Ullman appears as a character in the first version of Stein's short story "Moral Tales of 1920 and 1921." During World War II, Ullman returned to the United States. The year 1949 saw him back in Paris. He continued his artistic work there until his death in 1953. The collection consists of correspondence, original sketches, scrapbooks, memoirs, exhibition catalogs, newspaper clippings, photographs, and unpublished essays. Some of the materials document the careers of famous individuals connected with Ullman. For example, the artist's correspondence with Guy Pène Du Bois, Booth Tarkington, Eva LeGalliene, and William Merritt Chase, will no doubt be useful to researchers. In addition, included in the collection is a typed draft of Stein's "Moral Tales of 1920 and 1921." Fashion designer Michael (aka Michaele) Vollbracht graduated from Parsons in 1968 and was a visiting critic in 1972 and then again between 1983 and 1990. In addition to his fashion work, he is also know for his illustrations, which include portraits of celebrities and his design of the iconic Bloomingdale's shopping bag of the 1970s. In November 2000, Parsons mounted an exhibition of Vollbracht's work to celebrate the publication of the updated version of his book Nothing Sacred (New York: Rizzoli, 2000). From that exhibition, we received an original fashion sketch for a Bloomingdale's advertising campaign, 1976; posters of Marilyn Monroe and Gary Cooper, 1985-86; and a press kit for Nothing Sacred. Raymond S. Waldron, Jr., Papers Born in 1913 in Kansas City, Missouri, Raymond S. Waldron, Jr., attended the University of Missouri before transferring to Parsons where he received his degree in 1941. He was enrolled in the United States Army from 1942 until 1946; his duties included designing maps and camouflage nets and producing drawings of Nagasaki, Japan, following its bombing. After the war, he was hired by the Interior Design Department of Lord and Taylor in Manhattan. His most celebrated project, commissioned by Jacqueline Kennedy in 1963, was renovating the Queen’s Bedroom in Blair House, the presidential guest house in Washington, D.C. Leaving Lord and Taylor in 1965, he established his own business in New York, specializing in the decorative use of eighteenth and nineteenth century antiques. His firm remained active until his death in 2002. The Raymond S. Waldron, Jr., Papers include student sketchbooks and notebooks; photographs, renderings, schematics, and stereo slides of interior design projects; business files; and magazine clippings, 1938-94. A classmate of Claire McCardell, Joset Walker (1902- ) graduated from Parsons in 1928. She was a leading proponent of ready-to-wear clothing, but was perhaps best known as a costume designer for RKO Studios and its stars, including Katherine Hepburn and Irene Dunne. The Kellen Archives Center has scrapbooks of clippings and photographs that document the career of this designer. Chester Weinberg (1931-85) studied fashion at Parsons, receiving his degree in 1951. He was later a critic at the school, from 1955 to 1985. He rose to fame in the 1960s, ran his own company from 1971 to 1975, and went on to work as design director for Calvin Klein jeans in 1978. The Weinberg Papers consists of scrapbooks, sketches, photographs, and clippings. Edward
Wormley (1907-95) is often cited as one of the top three American furniture
designers of the middle decades of the twentieth century. As sole designer
for the Dunbar furniture company, he produced high quality collections,
year after year. He was an instructor at Parsons from 1952 to 1970. The
Wormley holdings at the Kellen Archives Center span the years 1928 to
1965 and include photographs, clippings, renderings, technical drawings,
and Dunbar catalogs. |