Aldrich spent over 40 years as a fashion designer, creating collections for chic women, sharing the spotlight with Pauline Trigere and Geoffrey Beene. He didn't intend to work in fashion, but a summer internship prior to entering law school that fall, forever altered the course of his life. He opened his own firm in 1927, after his first collection proved to be a huge success.
In 1937 Aldrich began collecting paintings by Gauguin, Monet and others. After he developed a friendship with Alfred H. Barr, Jr., the first director of the Museum of Modern Art, he looked to less-known artists and purchased each work for a maximum of $1,000. He gave all of these (112 works of art) to the Museum. He did the same with the Whitney Museum from 1963-1970. In 1963, Aldrich established his own museum. He sold his extensive collection of masterpieces from Picasso, Miro, Paul Klee and others (raising more than $1.3 million) to fund the building. In 1964, the museum opened to the public in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
Aldrich always saw a natural connection between art and fashion, even producing a dress collection in 1964 inspired by Op Art. In 1966, he sold his design business and focused solely on his museum, naming Alfred Barr, Philip Johnson and Joseph Hirschhorn to the board of directors. Over the next few decades, The Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art promoted the works of lesser-known artists and continues today to showcase revolutionary pieces and people.
Aldrich died at the age of 95 on October 25, 2001.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Pierre Paulin died on this date in 2009. He was a French furniture designer best known for his chair designs.
Paulin was born on July 9 1927 in Paris. He achieved famed while working at the studio of Marcel Gascoin when he exhibited his work at the 1953 Ideal Home Exhibition. In 1958 Artifort hired Paulin and began producing contemporary furniture. He developed a variety of seat "shells" from 1960 to 1970 made of molded wood lined with foam and prefabricated stretch fabric covers in bright colors. His iconic chairs included the Mushroom, Flesh Tongue and Ribbon. His designs are still sought after today by collectors. His work can be seen at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC, the George Pompidou Center in Paris and The Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Below is the Butterfly Chair in cowhide. Shop at Hive Modern for Pierre Paulin's designs.
No comments:
Post a Comment