dd20century

[dd20century]

A.M. Cassandre: Master of the Twentieth Century Poster

Editor's Note: This post was originally published in August 2024. We’re reposting it as part of our celebration of 100 years of Art Deco.

"Designing a poster means solving a technical and commercial problem….in a language that can be understood by the common man”. – A.M. Cassandre

Before A.M. Cassandre

A.M. Cassandre was one of Twentieth Century Europe’s most influential graphic designers and illustrators. Born on January 24, 1901, as Adolphe Jean-Marie Mouron to French parents living at the time in Kharkov, Ukraine. (1) “He spent his childhood years living and roaming between Russia and France, before he finally moved to Paris with his parents in 1915” (2) due to the political unrest in Ukraine at the time. (3) As a young man in Paris Cassandre studied at  École des Beaux-Arts and at the Académie Julian. (1)

Portrait of A. M. Cassandre (c. 1930). Photographer unknown. Image source.

Cassandre’s Early Career

In Paris during the 1910s, advertising posters were extraordinarily popular, and Cassandre had no trouble finding employment with a poster printer. While the designer took his inspiration from Cubism and Surrealism which were the predominant artistic movements of the period, he was a leader in the Art Deco movement, which is “characterized by the use of angular, symmetrical geometric forms’ and adulation of the modern machine. It was during the early 1920s that the designer began signing his posters as “Cassandre”. (2)

Cassandre’s posters were so successful that he was able to open his own design house in 1922, but the poster that made him famous was created several years later in 1925. The “Au Bucheron” poster created for a cabinet maker won first prize at the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes and was widely reprinted. (2)

A. M. Cassandre, Au Bucheron (1925). Image source.

Cassandre’s Design Philosophy

In the late 1920s Cassandre “set up his own advertising agency called Alliance Graphique, serving a wide variety of clients” (1). Best known of those are Dubonnet and  Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits. (1) Cassandre designed his posters so that they could be easily seen and understood from moving vehicles, using only capital letters in his posters as he believed them to be easier read from a distance. (3) “He … [initiated] the concept of the Serial Poster – a group of posters that conveys a whole interesting idea through rapid succession” (2).

A. M. Cassandre, poster for Dubonnet, (1932). Image source.

Cassandre as Type Designer and Innovator

He was also an innovator and master in the use of airbrush techniques.  Cassandre developed several famous typefaces: Acer Noir in 1935, and “Peignot, which was successfully exhibited at the 1937 World’s Fair in Paris” (2). For Cassandre, “type does not exist on its own, but is integrated with the image to create the unified concept of the design”(3). The Peignot typeface experienced a revival during the 1970s, when it was used for titles on several popular movies and television programs including “The Mary Tyler Moore Show (and its production company, MTM Enterprises)” (4). 

A. M. Cassandre, Peignot font ,(1937). Image source.

Cassandre’s Interests Beyond Poster Design

During the 1930s Cassandre not only “taught graphic design at the École des Arts Décoratifs and then at the École d'Art Graphique” (1) but became active in designing theatre sets and costumes. (2) In 1936, his works were exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. (1) The attention from the exhibition garnered Cassandre’s firm work designing covers for Harper’s Bazaar in New York City. (2)

A. M. Cassandre, Cover for Harper’s Bazaar (October, 1939). Image Source.

Cassandre’s Life During World War II

World War II had a dramatic effect on Cassandre’s life and a disastrous effect on his career. Just before the war he divorced his wife whom he married in 1924. At the age of 38, he joined the French Army and served until the fall of France after which he was demobilized. He lost his business and never again achieved the success he had prior to the war. (1)

Cassandre in the late 1940s and 1950s

After the war, Cassandre found work designing for the theater. During the remainder of the 1940s and throughout the 1950s, he worked with several Parisian fashion houses of his career most notably Hermès and Yves Saint Laurent. Cassandre designed scarves for Hermès and advertisements and posters for Yves Saint Laurent. (1,3) In addition, he was responsible for the iconic Yves Saint Laurent logo that is still in use today. (3)

In the late 1950s Cassandre turned down an offer to become “director of the French Arts Academy at the Villa Medici in Rome” (3). He left his home in Paris and moved to the French countryside where he had hoped to design and build his own home and establish “a world-class art institute” (3). Unfortunately, those ambitions were never realized as Cassandre continued to battle depression. After two years in the country, he returned to Paris. (2)

A. M. Cassandre, Logo for designer Yves Saint Laurent (c. 1958). Image source.

Cassandre’s Tragic End

In 1967 Cassandre’s depression caused him to attempt suicide. Sadly, his second attempt on June 17, 1968 was successful; Cassandre took his own life in his apartment. (2)

A. M. Cassandre’s Work in Books and Museums

A book on Cassandre’s work, The Poster Art of A. M. Cassandre was published in 1979, and Cassandre’s son, Henri Mouron published a study of his father’s work in 1985.  In 2012, A.M. Cassandre’s work appeared in the “Shaping Modernity: Design 1880–1980“ exhibition at MoMA. (2)

In 2024 Cassandre’s posters were included in a show ”Art Deco: Commercializing the Avant-Garde”  at Poster House in New York City. (1) In addition to the collections at MoMa is work can be found in Paris at Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris; in London at the Victoria and Albert Museum; and in Japan at the Hokkaido Obihiro Museum of Art.

Cassandre’s Legacy

A. M. Cassandre will be remembered for his iconic Art Deco posters, which celebrated luxury transport and modern machine technology of his time. He’ll also be remembered for helping to establish graphic design as a distinct professional discipline (3) and for the “belief that design should effectively communicate ideas, laid the groundwork for modern graphic design principles” (5).

References

Wikipedia. com, (22 May, 2024). Cassandre. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassandre

Retrographik.com, (n.d). A.M Cassandre, The Legendary Art Deco Poster Artist. https://retrographik.com/a-m-cassandre-art-deco-poster-artist/

Artyfactory.com, (n.d.). A. M. Cassandre (1901-1968). https://www.artyfactory.com/graphic_design/graphic_designers/cassandre.htm

Wikipedia. com, (31 March, 2024). Peignot (typeface)  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peignot_(typeface)

Scottishschools.info, (n.d.). Graphic Designer A.M Cassandre Facts. http://www.scottishschools.info/Websites/SchSecWhitehill/UserFiles/file/Higher%20Art%20Homework/Graphic%20designer%20AM%20Cassandre%20facts.pdf

[dd20century]

Art Deco Masterpiece: The Niagara Mohawk Building

Editor's Note: This post was originally published in April 2014. We’re reposting it as part of our celebration of 100 years of Art Deco.

Recently our friends at Art Deco Architecture posted this stunning image of the Niagara Mohawk Building is located in my hometown, Syracuse, NY. I used to pass this building every day on my way to work at another, although less impressive, Art Deco structure, the State Tower Building.

Melvin L. King, Niagara Mohawk Building (1932). Photographer unknown. Source

As soon as the snow melts (if it ever does), I’ll get out and take more photos of this Art Deco masterwork to add to Design and Desire. And to our friends at Art Deco Architecture, if you do get the opportunity to visit Syracuse, NY, please don’t hesitate to look me up!

Read the orignal post on Art Deco Architecture.

Enjoy a the Onondaga Historical Association's short video on the Niagara Mohawk Building

[dd20century]

The Sparkling Wildlife of Jean Schlumberger

"For me, jewelry art is first and foremost a means of expression, bringing pure and enduring beauty beyond the usual framework of fashion." — JEAN SCHLUMBERGER

Jean Michel Schlumberger was born on June 24, 1907 in Mulhouse, France to Paul Albert Edouard Schlumberger and Elisabeth Schoen. (1) At an early age young Jean Michel showed a passion and talent for drawing, his parents, however, expected their son to join the family’s centuries old textile business. They “discourage[d] his artistic interest by refusing to allow him to undertake formal training”(2).

Schlumberger’s Early Career

When Jean Michel came of age he “dropped out of school and moved to Paris. He was hired by French fashion designer Lucien Lelong, then worked at an art publisher"(3). During his free time,  he  shopped the Paris flea markets in search of  Victorian antiques. He especially enjoyed repurposing vintage items into jewelry and objects d’art. Once “Schlumberger found Meissen porcelain flowers decorating an old chandelier and turned them into elegant brooches” (2).

Schlumberger’s jewelry became so popular he was able to quit his day job and devoted himself entirely to jewelry design. When designer Elsa Schiaparelli discovered Schlumberger’s work she hired him to design buttons for her, then soon he was designing jewelry for her firm. (1) In 1937, he was promoted to head of the button and jewelry design team for the brand's costumes. (3)

Schlumberger During World War II and Early 1950s

In 1939 Schlumberger joined “the French Army and survived [the battle of] Dunkirk. He also served in England and the Middle East with the Free French forces under Gen. Charles de Gaulle”(2). During the war Schlumberger met photographer Lucien “Luc” Bouchage, who became  Schlumberger’s life partner. (1)

After the war, Schlumberger moved to New York City and worked as a fashion designer for Chez Ninon. (1) In 1946 he ran into one of his old friends, Nicolas Bongard who was working designing buttons. The two opened a jewelry salon, and it was during this time that Schlumberger began designing the bird and animal-inspired brooches he is well-known for. (3)

Jean Schlumberger, Bird on a Rock Brooch for Tiffany & Co. (1965). Image source.

Schlumberger’s Design Method

Schlumberger created intricate drawings for his jewelry designs. He used fine parchment paper, pen, and India ink and then applied gouache to his drawings with seamless, fluid lines. This is impressive is because Schlumberger “had no formal training in art and was completely self-taught”(3). For his pieces he selected “gemstones purely for their color and beauty, not their value…. Nevertheless, his creations were expensive—and just strange enough to appeal to confident women with a hint of a rebellious streak”(4).

Schlumberger Joins Tiffany

In 1956 Walter Hoving, Chairman of Tiffany & Co. was impressed with Schlumberger’s opulent unique design sense and hired the designer to work for his company. 3 “In his workshop and reception room on the mezzanine level [Tiffany’s] iconic Fifth Avenue store, Schlumberger sketched out the jewelry creations that would usher in a whole new era for the brand”(3).

The following year Schlumberger was tasked with setting “the fabled Tiffany diamond, the largest and finest canary diamond in the world…which weighed 128.51 carats and was discovered in Africa in 1871….[H]e created a necklace and clip that surrounded the gem with swirling diamond ribbons”(2).

“Schlumberger remains one of only four jewelers who have signed their creations for Tiffany & Co"(5).

Jean Schlumberger, Dolphin Brooch for Tiffany and Co., (1964). Image source.

Star-Studded Clientele

Schlumberger’s client base was almost as glittering as his jewelry, including the  Duchess of Windsor, Babe Paley, C.Z. Guest, Gloria Guinness, Gloria Vanderbilt, Greta Garbo, Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, and Diana Vreeland. (1,2,5)

Iconic Designs

Schlumberger had a home on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. He found much of the inspiration for his designs from the flora and fauna on the island. One example is his iconic “Oiseau de Paradis" brooch with the image of a mythical bird emitting colorful light like a kaleidoscope, with yellow beryl, amethyst, emerald and jade”(3).

Jean Schlumberger, Oiseau de Paradis brooch for Tiffany & Co., (1963). Image source.

One of Schlumberger most famous designs is the Bird on a Rock brooch (1965) which features a platinum and gold diamond studded bird perched on top of a square cut gemstone. The design was intended to use a yellow diamond as the base, but Tiffany produced the brooch “with many types of gemstones”(3).

A signature Tiffany and Company item designed by Schlumberger in 1962 (6) that does not feature naturalist forms is the Paillonné enameled Croisillon ring. “The paillonné enameling technique…was almost lost, because the manufacturing process is extremely complex and requires superior craftsmanship.”  The process begins with a base enamel applied to the gold base. Next golden patterns or paillons are added on top of the enamel. The process is finished by affixing a layer of clear glaze to the paillons. (3) Today Tiffany and Company’s Croisillon bracelet inspired by the design for Schlumberger’s ring retails at $57,000. (6)

Jean Schlumberger, Croisillon ring for Tiffany & Co., (1962). Image source.

Legacy of Jean Schlumberger

Jean Schlumberger was “the first jewelry designer to win the coveted Fashion Critics’ Coty Award in 1958”(2), and in 1977 he was honored by the French Government with a Chevalier of the National Order of Merit. (2)

In 1995 the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris held an exhibition of Schlumberger’s work. (5) In 2018 Bunny Mellon’s collection of the designer’s work was held at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, VA. The collection then travelled to the Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg, FL where an accompanying exhibit “Drawn to Beauty” featured Schlumberger’s drawings and other artwork. (7)

In 2001 a Schlumberger dolphin brooch from the collection of Elizabeth Taylor sold at auction for over 1.2 million dollars; at the time it was record for any piece of Schlumberger jewelry at auction. (6) According to jewelry specialist Angelina Chen of Christies in New York, “Fewer than 10 of these brooches have ever been made”(6). In 2023 Tiffany and Compnay introduced a high jewelry collection called "Out of the Blue" inspired by Schlumberger's aquatic designs. (7).

Jean Schlumberger died in his Paris apartment on August 29, 1987 at the age of 80. According to Schlumberger’s longtime business partner Nicolas Bongard, "the designer had been in poor health…after a series of strokes" (2).

The designs of Jean Schlumberger “all but revolutionized the jewelry world with his witty, opulent, nature-inspired designs" (8). Tiffany & Co. continues to produce Schlumberger’s designs.

References

Wikipedia.com, (23 March. 2025). “Jean Schlumberger (jewelry designer)” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Schlumberger_(jewelry_designer)

Lawson, C. (1 September, 1987). “J. Schlumberger dies in Paris at 80.” New York Times Online. https://www.nytimes.com/1987/09/01/obituaries/j-schlumberger-dies-in-paris-at-80.html

Ho, H.Y., (4 October, 2024). “Jean Schlumberger: The legendary life of the jewellery designer who shaped Tiffany”. https://www.lofficielibiza.com/fashion/jean-schlumberger-jewellery-designer-tiffany-and-co

FredLeighton.com, (2024). “Jean Schlumberger.” https://www.fredleighton.com/makers/jean-schlumberger/

Christies.com, (3 April, 2019). “Jean Schlumberger: ‘A trailblazer in the world of fine jewels’.” https://www.christies.com/en/stories/the-jewels-of-jean-schlumberger-6a8a168d26d64e44be6a0a5d2745501a

Tiffany.com, (n.d.) Search results for “Schlumberger” retrieved 23 March 2025 from https://www.tiffany.com/search/?q=schlumberger

Prestigeonline.com, (1 September 2023). "Tiffany & Co.’s Blue Book 2023: Out of the Blue Celebrates the Legacy of Jean Schlumberger". https://www.prestigeonline.com/th/jewellery/jewellery-feature/tiffany-co-s-blue-book-2023-out-of-the-blue-celebrates-the-legacy-of-jean-schlumberger/

Vesilind, E., (15 November, 2018). “Jeweler Jean Schlumberger Celebrated in Pair of Museum Exhibits.” https://www.jckonline.com/editorial-article/jean-schlumberger-museum-show/

[dd20century]

Art Deco Magazine Covers from Nuevo Mundo

Editor's Note: This post first ran in November 2017. We're reposting it as part of our celebration of 100 years of Art Deco.

Thank you to 50watts.com for sharing wonderful art deco illustrations from the Spanish magazine Nuevo Mundo (1919-1930). According to the post on 50watts.com, “Though the magazine ran weekly from 1895 to 1933, the colorful covers appear from 1919 to 1930.” The images are included in the Hemeroteca Digital database of the National Library of Spain.

Rafael de Penagos, Cover Illustration for Nuevo Mundo (1930).

[dd20century]

Clarice Cliff: Britain's "Bizarre" Tableware Designer

Editor's Note: This post first ran in January 2022. We're reposting it as part of our celebration of 100 years of Art Deco.

Clarice Cliff is best known as a leading designer of the Art Deco period. Her brightly colored ceramic tableware is almost instantly recognizable, and she had many imitators. “Cliff’s timeless designs are widely collected worldwide.” (1) Her popularity endures with her biography depicted in the recently released British film, THE COLOUR ROOM. (1)

Clarice Cliff’s Youth and Early Career Clarice Cliff was born to parents of modest means on January 20, 1899 in Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent. Her father was an iron worker while “her mother took in laundry to supplement the family income.” (2) In addition to Clarice the Cliffs had seven children, so like many working class children, Clarice left school at 13 to work “in ‘The Potteries’ in Stoke-on-Trent. She started out painting gold lines on the edges of the ware. In 1916, she went to work for  “the factory of A.J. Wilkinson at Newport, Burslem, to improve her career opportunities.” (1) During this time, she took night classes in art and sculpture at Burslem School of Art. Clarice also continued to learn new ceramic decorating skills such as enameling, gilding, and banding and kept notebooks on patterns and decorating ideas.(2)

Clarice Cliff, Crocus Pattern on a variety of “Bizarre” shapes (1929) manufactured by Newport Pottery Co. Ltd. Image source.

At the time, A.J. Wilkinson was manufacturing conservative Victorian era designs; its head designer John Butler had been with the firm for over twenty years. In 1927 Shorter decided to shake things up and gave Clarice her own studio at Newport Pottery, which he had purchased in 1920. Clarice began decorating glazed pieces and hand painting her own designs with special over glazes. (2) The palette of these over glazes was brighter and more vibrant than the traditional under the glaze color. This suited Cliff’s flowing florals, soft landscapes and Art Deco geometrics, which she called “Bizarre.” One of A.J. Wilkinson’s senior salesmen, “Ewart Oakes…took a carload to a major stocklist; it was immediately popular” (2). Soon a second designer, Gladys Scarlett, came on board to help Cliff. At this time the “Bizarre” line had a new backstamp designed especially for the line.

Clarice Cliff, Runray Vases (1929) manufactured by Newport Pottery Co. Ltd. Image source.

Clarice Cliff and The Bizarre Girls To start Miss Cliff had only one young decorator, Ethel Barrow, working on the Crocus line, but the ware’s popularity forced Shorter to establish a separate decorating division of twenty young women decorators. Miss Barrow was responsible for training the workers and oversaw the shop. (2) Eventually, over 70 young women would work as decorators for Miss Cliff. These decorators earned the name ‘The Bizzare Girls.’ “Clarice Cliff and her Bizarre girls gave in-store demonstrations at leading retailers like Lawleys, Selfridges and Waring and Gillow, attracting much publicity” (3). In addition to the department stores, Bizzare ware was sold mail-order through colorful brochures produced by the pottery; a ground breaking market move for the time (2).

Clarice Cliff, Sunray Teapot (1930). Image source.

“In 1930, Cliff was appointed Art Director to Newport Pottery and A. J. Wilkinson” (2). Her new role required her to spent more time with the companies’ co-owner, Colley Shorter. A romantic relationship developed, but had to be kept secret since Shorter was 17 years older than Cliff and already married.The affair continued behind doors for ten years. (2)

Unlike other British dinnerware designers Cliff designed both the shapes of the product as well as the decoration. In the 1930s the “Bon Jour/Biarritz, Stamford, Eton, Daffodil, and Trieste” shape lines were produced. Twenty items in the Bon Jour line were introduced in 1933, but the line proved so popular that ten more items were added the following year (2). In addition to dinnerware, Cliff created “innovatively shaped vases, bowls and 'fancies’, such as the Liner vase [and] Flower tube vase” (2).

Marketing Clarice Cliff’s Bizarre Line Cliff and Shorter decided to use celebrity endorsements both in magazine advertisements and at live presentations at department stores to help move the products. Some celebrities chosen to participate were “actress Adrienne Allen,…BBC presenter Christopher Stone, musical comedy star Bobby Howes, and Sir Malcolm Campbell.” Although British consumers were suffering through the Great Depression, Cliff’s pottery continued to sell very strongly, despite the fact that it was quite expensive dinnerware for the period. Not only were Cliff’s designs in great demand in Britain, “Her Bizarre and Fantasque ware was sold throughout North America, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa”(2).

Clarice Cliff, Red Autumn plate (1930). Image source.

Clarice Cliff’s Designs Adapt to Changing Tastes In the mid-1930s tastes began to change, the hard geometric looks of the Art Deco period gave way to softer more heavily modeled shapes. Cliff shifted to designs with raised florals, or textures like baskets and barrels. The My Garden collection featured brightly colored ware with modelled flowers on its handles which was introduced in 1934. In 1937, the Rafia line was “based on traditional basketware by Native Americans, decorated in a similar style to them with small blocks of colour” (2). The heavily modelled Harvest ware, jugs and bowls featuring corn and fruit were also very popular.

Cliff’s Life and Career Changes After Colley Shorter’s wife died in 1940, he and Miss Cliff married. Cliff moved in to “his home at Chetwynd House on Northwood Lane in Clayton, Staffordshire”(2) which was designed by British Arts and Crafts architects Richard Barry Parker and Raymond Unwin. During in World War II government restrictions against producing decorated ware placed on ceramics manufacturers effectively ended Cliff’s career. She continued to assist in operations at Newport Pottery and A. J. Wilkinson, but could no longer put her designs into production. After the war, tastes turned to the traditional English dinnerware, so Miss Cliff channeled her creativity into decorating Chetwynd House and its sprawling gardens (2).

Clarice Cliff, May Avenue dinnerware line (c. 1933). Photo credit: Andrew Muir. Image source.

In late 1971 an exhibition of Miss Cliff’s designs “prompted by enthusiastic collectors, including Martin Battersby, an early devotee of 20s and 30s design,” was held in Brighton. While Cliff contributed comments to the exhibition catalog, “she refused an invitation to go to the opening” (2). Along with this show and a book on Miss Cliff’s work published in 1976, a renewed interest in her work emerged. “In 1982 the original Clarice Cliff Collectors Club was formed and promoted her and her work throughout the world” (2).

At the end of the Twentieth Century and through the early years of the 2000s, Clarice Cliff’s work became highly sought after commanding high prices at auction. “An 18in dish, part of the May Avenue design of green and black trees in an avenue of red-roofed houses, which was briefly produced in 1932 and 1933”(5) was sold for a record price of nearly £40,000,  in a 2003 auction at Christie’s (5). In 2009 Will Farmer of the BBC Antiques Roadshow participated in an on air tribute to the designer and her work. The same year Cliff’s designs were featured in the new ceramics gallery at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London (2).

Clarice Cliff’s colorful and whimsical contributions to Art Deco design showed the world that dinnerware items once thought to be utilitarian could be stunning works of art in their own right.

References

Alberge, D. (17 March 2021). 'A beacon of change’: new film to celebrate life of ceramicist Clarice Cliff. [The Guardian website]. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/mar/17/a-beacon-of-change-new-film-to-celebrate-life-of-ceramicist-clarice-cliff

Wikipedia.com, (25 November 2021). Clarice Cliff. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarice_Cliff

Pottery-English.com , (7 March, 2015). Clarice Cliff Biography. https://pottery-english.com/clarice-cliff-biography/

V&A Museum, (2021). Art Deco: Clarice Cliff. https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/art-deco-clarice-cliff

Kennedy, M., (14 May, 2003). Forgotten plate sells for record £40,000. [The Guardian website]. https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/may/15/arts.artsnews

[dd20century]

An Elegant Art Deco Lamp with an Unusual Base

Editor's Note: This post first ran in May 2021. We're reposting it as part of our celebration of 100 years of Art Deco.

Ruth Gerth, Glow Table Lamp (1931) for the Chase Brass and Copper Company, chrome-plated metal with bakelite molded knob. Photo credit: Copper-Hewitt. Image source.

This may look like a photo of a charming little Art Deco lamp, but look again. The base is actually a metal plated copper toilet float! Pioneering product designer Ruth Gerth designed this lamp for the Chase Brass and Copper Company when during the 1930s the form decided to expand their product line from plumbing fixtures to consumer goods. Mrs. Gerth really put “industrial” to industrial design with this lamp!

Thank you to Core77 for sharing this interesting piece of design history. See more items Ruth Gerth designed for the Chase Brass and Copper Company on the Core77 website.

[dd20century]

A New Owner for Frank Lloyd Wright's Price Tower

Over the past months Design and Desire in the Twentieth Century has been following the events surrounding the fate of Frank Lloyd Wright's Price Tower in Bartlesville, OK. According to a report on news9.com Wright's only built skyscraper has a new owner, McFarlin Building, LLC. The building faced an uncertain fate after its previous owners, Copper Holdings, LLC, Copper Tree, Inc., declared bankruptcy in 2024.

McFarlin Building, LLC. had placed a offer on the Price Tower but disputes occurred over which party was responsible for debts accumulated prior to the sale. In January, while the sale of the building was still pending, a local judge ordered that its water be shut off to avoid any potential water damage caused by burst pipes. To our knowledge, then owners CopperTree, Inc. never complied with the order.

Frank Lloyd Wright, Price Tower (1956), Bartlesville, Oklahoma. By Emersonbiggins85 at the English-language Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, Image source.

A report on BartlesvilleRadio.com stated:

As part of the judge’s ruling, the $1.4 million from the sale will be placed in a court-managed account until all debts and liabilities are resolved. Any profits made from the sale of tower artifacts must either be returned to McFarlin or deducted from the total held in escrow.

According to the report on news9.com, "A next court date is scheduled for next month to address any remaining financial and legal issues tied to the sale."

There is hope in the Bartlesville Community that the new owners McFarlin Building, LLC will invest the resources into Wright's masterpiece that will do justice to its restoration. McFarlin Building, LLC had saved Tulsa, Oklahoma’s historic Mayo Hotel from almost certain demolition in 2001.

Graham Downers of news9.com wrote, "the building as a is a key part of Bartlesville’s identity. Maria Gus, executive director of Visit Bartlesville, said the tower’s closure has had a major impact on the city’s tourism."

Watch a video about the sale of the Price Tower on news9.com.

Read about the sale of the Price Tower on BartlesvilleRadio.com.

[dd20century]

Leonard Maltin in Conversation with Animator Floyd Norman

Enjoy this 2000 conversation between film critic and Disney historian Leonard Maltin and Floyd Norman the first black Disney animator as part of the TCM Classic Film Festival that had been moved online due to the Coronavirus pandemic. It's great to hear Mr. Norman say, "Hand drawing is alive and well." (But we all knew that.)

Read our recent post on Floyd Norman.

[dd20century]

Henry Dreyfuss: Groundbreaking UI Designer

Editor's Note: This post first ran in January 2024. We're reposting it as part of our celebration of 100 years of Art Deco.

"When the point of contact between the product and people becomes a point of friction, then the industrial designer has failed.” – Henry Dreyfuss

To say that Henry Dreyfuss was one of the most influential designers of the Twentieth Century may sound like an overstatement until one considers his portfolio of iconic designs. Dreyfuss and his firm were responsible for products that were ubiquitous during the past century, including the Model 500 telephone and Honeywell’s circular thermostat. Both products were found in many American homes until digital products replaced them. Dreyfuss designs ranged from clocks and vacuum cleaners to locomotives and steamships. As if this is not impressive, Dreyfuss is considered a pioneer in user experience design. (1)

Henry Dreyfuss (c. 1940). Photographer unknown. Image source.

Henry Dreyfuss as a Young Man

Henry Dreyfuss was born in Brooklyn on March 2, 1904. Not much is known of his early life, but his family had a theatrical supply business which may have connected young Henry with one of his earliest jobs, “designing sets for stage presentations at a Broadway motion-picture theatre”(2).  Dreyfuss later studied as an apprentice with Norman bel Geddes. After leaving bel Geddes, Dreyfuss continued on with theatrical design, producing “250 stage sets for a number of theatres before 1928”(2). during this time received special recognition for “the cellblock set for The Last Mile, a 1930 production starring Spencer Tracy. (3)

Dreyfuss was offered a job on the design staff of the Macy Company, but turned it down because, in 1929, at the age of 25, Dreyfuss opened his own design firm. That same year he won a telephone design contest held by Bell Laboratories and “began work in 1930 in collaboration with Bell staff”(2) to produce the Model 300 telephone; “molded in black phenolic plastic”(2) the phone had a transmitter and receiver housed together in the same handset. (2)

As Dreyfuss’s business grew, he recognized the need for a business manager. Doris Marks, “the daughter of the former borough president of Manhattan”(2) was recommended by one of Dreyfuss’s old schoolmates. Dreyfuss hired her, and the two hit it off immediately. They later married and had three children: a son and two daughters. (4) Doris remained involved in the design business and assisted Henry in publishing several books. She also served on the boards of several philanthropic organizations. (6)

Design Breakthroughs in the 1930s

Remarkably The Great Depression in the 1930s was a period of great productivity and success for Dreyfuss. In 1933, he designed a “flat top” refrigerator for General Electric that hid the “previously exposed refrigeration unit by placing it beneath the cabinet”(2). In 1935 Dreyfuss designed an alarm clock for Westclox, and four years later he designed their iconic Big Ben alarm clock. (2)

The following year he developed “Model 150 upright vacuum cleaner with the first plastic hood in Bakelite”(2) for the Hoover company. In the same year he was commissioned to design products for the American Thermos Bottle Company. (2)

Henry Dreyfuss, Big Ben alarm clock for Westclox (1939). Image source.

Henry Dreyfuss introduced one of his most impressive works “his design of a Mercury locomotive [which] featured cutout holes in the ‘white-walled’ driver wheels, lit by concealed spotlights at night”(2). The train represented the epitome of streamlined Art Deco design. New York Central introduced the Mercury train in 1938 “for its Twentieth Century Limited New-York-Chicago run”(2).

In 1937 Elmer McCormick an engineer with the Deere & Company tractor company, travelled to New York City from his company’s headquarters in Iowa for design advice from Dreyfuss. This meeting resulted in making Dreyfuss one of his most important and lucrative clients. “In 1938 Dreyfuss’s John Deere Model A tractor was introduced”(2), and Dreyfuss would eventually redesign Deere’s entire line. (3)

Henry Dreyfuss, New York Central Mercury Train (1936). Image source.

“Dreyfuss’s approach to creating products was based on a logical functionality that he would call ‘human factor’ (or ergonomic) design”(3). He preferred combining form and function rather than follow showy design trends, (3) an approach that would influence designers for decades to come. “Dreyfuss was much more than a stylist; he applied common sense and a scientific approach to design problems”(4). This resulted in developing products that were not only elegant, but safer and featured ease of use and maintenance. (4)

For the 1939 World’s Fair in New York City, Dreyfuss “designed the Democracity model in the Perisphere, representing an American city and its surrounding suburbs of the year 2039” (2). He also designed the AT&T Pavilion at the Fair. (2,3) Dreyfuss’s mentor, Norman bel Geddes’s contribution to the World’s Fair was the iconic Futurama city for General Motors. (5)

Read part two of “Henry Dreyfuss: Groundbreaking UI Designer”.

References

Curtis, M. , (11 November, 2020). The original UX designer: Henry Dreyfuss (1904–1972). https://bootcamp.uxdesign.cc/the-original-ux-designers-henry-dreyfuss-1904-1972-8444a1769d11

Industrial Designers Society of America, (2023). Henry Dreyfuss, FIDSA. https://www.idsa.org/profile/henry-dreyfuss

Uhle, F. (n.d.). Henry Dreyfuss Associates, LLC. https://www.encyclopedia.com/books/politics-and-business-magazines/henry-dreyfuss-associates-llc

Wikipedia, (24 February, 2023). Henry Dreyfuss. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Dreyfuss

Futurama, of the city of, designed by Norman Bel Geddes for the General Motors Exhibit at the New York World’s Fair in 1939. New York, 1939. [Photograph] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2012645722/.

Dreyfuss, J. (22 October, 1972). Henry and Doris Dreyfuss. https://calteches.library.caltech.edu/2944/1/dreyfuss.pdf

[dd20century]

The Chrysler Building and the Desire to go Higher

Note: This post is dedicated to my husband, Bill Bowen for his generous assistance with editing posts and providing photography for dd20century.

“By the 1920s the steel frame, the elevator, and the concentration of business districts meant great upward pressure for real estate developers to build ever higher.” –Christopher Gray, contributing editor, The Chrysler Building: Creating an Icon The Roaring Twenties was a period in United States history when everything was going up: stocks, hemlines, America’s optimism and of course, skyscrapers. None, however, is as representative of the era as Manhattan’s Chrysler Building. Did you know that the iconic building was at the center of a competition to become the world’s tallest building?  And for eleven months, from October 1929 through September 1930, it was. Today, eighty years after it was completed, the Chrysler Building stands at 1,046 feet tall, making the 77-story building the 32nd tallest building in the world (1).

Wm. Van Alen, Chrysler Building (1929) shown here in 1932. Image source.

The Chrysler Building was first conceived as an office building project by real estate developer William H. Reynolds. He hired William Van Alen as the building’s architect, however, at the time Van Alen was regarded more as a designer than an architect and had never taken on a project of this magnitude. In 1928, automobile magnate Walter P. Chrysler decided to headquarter his executive offices in New York City. He liked the location at Lexington Avenue and 42nd Street and soon struck a deal with Reynolds to take over the project. Chrysler then asked Van Alen to build him the tallest building in the world (2).

There was one hitch: developers of the Bank of Manhattan building located further downtown at 40 Wall Street were already in the process of constructing the world’s tallest skyscraper while Van Alen’s plans were still mainly on the drawing board. Van Alen’s former partner, H. Craig Severance, was one of the architects responsible for the Bank of Manhattan building (3). Nevertheless, Chrysler and Van Alen were determined to make their building the world’s tallest. Construction on the Chrysler Building began in January 1929 and continued at an astounding rate of on average four floors week. This accelerated pace was attributed to strict building and worksite standards along with the use of two exterior construction elevators. These factors also contributed to the building’s excellent safety record: no workers were killed during the project (2).

Chrysler Bldg height comparison chart. Image source.

Throughout 1929 rumors concerning the height of the two structures flew fast and furious. In the summer of that year, a flagpole was added to the design of the Bank of Manhattan building to increase its height, “which topped out at 927 feet” (3). Chrysler and Van Alen took the alteration in stride, as Van Alen had already designed a 185-foot steel vortex that was being constructed in a metal shop inside the tower. Their challenge was how to erect the finial without putting workers and hundreds of people in the adjacent area in danger. On October 23, 1929, a derrick was rigged to the top of the building’s dome; the spire was hoisted to the outside, then attached to the structure. The entire process took about 90 minutes(2).

Unfortunately, Van Alen’s masterpiece never received the attention it should have as the following day the New York Stock Market crashed. Americans had more serious issues on their minds than the tallest building in the world.  When the Chrysler Building opened to the public on May 27, 1930, its new tenants were greeted with a triangular grand lobby in the Art Deco tyle that was decorated in steel, granite, and marble (2). There were 32 elevator cabs each with adorned with a different custom design.

Edward Trumbull painted “the mural on the ceiling of the lobby [that] embodied the idea of ‘energy and man’s application of it’”(3). The lobby even boasted its own version of a digital clock (2).

William Van Alen, Chrysler Building, Detail of art-Deco ornamentation. Image source.

At the top of the building, the steel-sheathed streamlined dome housed Walter P. Chrysler’s executive office, an observation deck, and the legendary Cloud Club, an exclusive men’s club where New York’s leading businessmen gathered amidst Art Deco elegance (2). The interior design of the club included a “cloud mural on the vaulted ceiling, and a mural of Manhattan on the north wall” (5), and “an etched-glass frieze of automobile workers” (5) in Chrysler’s private dining room. “In 1945 the observation deck was closed, the Cloud Club followed in the 1970's” (4).

The Cloud Club in 1976. Credit: Randy Juster, decopix.com Image source. 

The Chrysler Building “reflected a merger of the new and the old. The shiny Nirosta steel” (3) from Germany, specified by Chrysler (2) “that clad the sunburst tower and gleaming Gargoyles had never been used in America before. These were not the gothic gargoyles of the Woolworth Building, but the icons of the Chrysler automobile, one of the many wonders of this machine age. The internal structures of the Chrysler Building also reflected the advanced mechanics of the modern age.” (3)

Credit: Oscar Graubner (1934). Margaret Bourke-White on Chrysler Bldg Gargoyle. (Gargoyle design attributed to Chesley Bonestell). Image source.

Unfortunately, the Chrysler Building brought no future success to William Van Alen. His collegial relationship with Chrysler disintegrated over disputes concerning fees owed. Van Alen sued Chrysler and eventually put a lien on the building. Due partly to legal disputes and partly to the prevailing poor economic conditions, Van Alen never secured another project as prestigious as this. He died in obscurity in 1954 (2) about the same time the Chrysler Corporation moved out and sold the building (4).

References:

Ranking of world’s tallest buildings http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001338.html#axzz0yOv38OFD

Oey, N. (Producer & Writer). (2007). Modern Marvels: the Chrysler Building. [DVD] The History Channel.

Zimmerman, E. BuildingThe Chrysler Building: The Social Construction of the Skyscraper http://xroads.virginia.edu/~1930s/display/chrysler/frame-1.html

The Chrysler Building: http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=83

McGrath, C. (2005, May 26). A Lunch Club for the Higher-Ups. New York Times Online. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/26/garden/26cloud.html

Additional resources: Horsely, C.B. (n.d.). Chrysler Building/Kent Building. http://www.thecityreview.com/chryslerb.html Gardner, R. (2010, August 26). Duking it Out at 1,200 Feet. Wall Street Journal Online. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703632304575451763679448750.html?mod=googlenews_wsj Stravitz, D. (2002). Chrysler Building: Creating a New York Icon, Day by Day. Princeton, NJ: Princeton Press. Wonders of the World: Chrysler Building http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/wonder/structure/chrysler.html On Rennovations Tishman-Speyer. (2005). Case-study: Chrysler Center/New York, New York, United States.  http://www.tishmanspeyer.com/casestudies/index.aspx?id=5 New York Architecture Images: Chrysler Building http://www.nyc-architecture.com/MID/MID021.htm

[dd20century]

Celebrating 100 Years of Art Deco

This year marks the centennial of the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris. It was during the exhibition that the term "Art Deco" began to be used to describe the industrial-inspired art, design, architecture, products and fashions that were being produced in Europe at the time. The trend would soon catch fire across the Atlantic and become one of the most influential art movements in the US in the Twentieth Century.

To celebrate the first 100 years of Art Deco, we'll be reposting many of our Art Deco posts from the past. Starting tomorrow we'll repost one of our most popular posts: "The Chrysler Building and the Desire to go Higher."

For more information on Art Deco visit the New York Art Deco Society website. If you're in the New York City area this year, you might be interested in checking out some of the exciting events they have planned to mark the centennial.

Postcard of Pavilion of Galeries Lafayette department store, Paris (1925). Image source.

Incidentally, Design and Desire is celebrating another big anniversary this year -- this year marks the 15th year we've been blogging about Twentieth Century Design and architecture! Also, don't forget to follow us on Bluesky and Facebook.

[dd20century]

Christian Dior's Fashions for 1955

Enjoy this brief video of Christian Dior's "New Look" collection for the Fall and Winter of 1955. (The video has no sound.) Dior’s influence, however, extended beyond the couture house as he established Dior as a global brand.

Read more about Christian Dior, "The New Look," and his celebrity clientele.

[dd20century]

Frank Lloyd Wright's Price Tower to be Auctioned in May

If you're a regular reader of Design and Desire in the Twentieth Century you are aware that we've been following the situation of Frank Lloyd Wright's Price Tower in Bartlesville, OK. Recently there was a post on the Cushman & Wakefield Commericial Oklahoma Facebook page stating that the building is scheduled to go to auction on May 6, 2025.

For background on current developments related to the Price Tower visit the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy website.

Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Oklahoma advertisement for the Price Tower Auction in May 2025.

[dd20century]

More Important Buildings Lost in the January 2025 Southern California Wildfires

On January 20, 2025 we posted a list of 10 Significant Buildings Lost in the 2025 Los Angeles Wildfires. Sadly, the buildings listed below were also lost:

The Robert Bridges House (c. 1990's) by Robert Bridges

The Keeler House (1991) by Ray Kappe

The Andrew McNally House by Frederick L Roehrig

The Zane Grey Estate (1907) by Myron Hunt and Elmer Grey

The Henry S. Rowen House (1957) by Josef Van der Kar

Gregory Ain’s Park Planned Homes (c. 1940s)

Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center

Topanga Ranch Motel (1929), a popular film location

While the Pasadena Playhouse built by Elmer Grey, John Cyril Bennett, A. Dwight Gibbs, Cyril Bennett in 1924 did not burn down, it did suffer significant damage causing the cancellation of several theatre productions.

For details on these structures see Min Chen's post on artnet.com.

Ray Kappe, The Keeler House (1991). Pasadena, CA. Destroyed January 2025. Image source.

[dd20century]

Beyond Gorgeous: The Work of Alexander Girard

If you enjoyed our recent post on designer Alexander Girard, you might be interested in this 2013 presentation by Alexandra Lange architecture and design critic and journalist. In her talk, Ms. Lange makes the case that Girard was not just a talented decorator, but also an influential innovator.

The presentation "Beyond Gorgeous: the Work of Alexander Girard" was held at the Indianapolis Museum of Art which holds several examples of Girard's work in their collection.

[dd20century]

Concerns Continue Over the Condition of Frank Lloyd Wright's Price Tower

Fox 23 of Tulsa, OK has been doing a terrific job covering the ongoing story of the fate of Frank Lloyd Wright's Price Tower in Bartlesville, OK.

According to their reporting the area experienced near-zero temperatures over several days in late February 2025. Water service to the building has never been shut off despite a court order directing the building's owner to do so. Fox 23 interviewed Sara Werneke, of the Oklahoma Historical Society, who is worried the building could now have significant water damage due to burst water pipes in the building.

Read the post and watch the video on the Fox 23 website.

Frank Lloyd Wright, Price Tower (1956), Bartlesville, OK. Photo credit: Photo: Carol M. Highsmith/Library of Congress. Image source.

[dd20century]

Animation Legend Floyd Norman

“So here I am, I have this love of art and this love of motion pictures, and so animation was the perfect blend of the two.” – Floyd Norman

Floyd Norman, the first back animator at Disney Studios, is a trailblazer in the world of animation. In addition to Disney, he worked for several studios during his career including Hanna-Barbera Productions, Ruby-Spears, and Pixar. In 1966, he co-founded Vignette Films, Inc., which produced animated films about black history. (1)

Young Floyd Norman Discovers the Wonderful World of Animation

Floyd E. Norman was born on June 22, 1935, in Santa Monica, California. (1) His parents moved to California from Natchez, Mississippi. As a young child, he developed a love of drawing which persisted throughout his life. During Floyd Norman’s youth, the Santa Monica community was “rich with artists, writers, musicians, dancers, choreographers and composers” (2). Young Floyd received a lot of positive encouragement to follow his dreams. (2)

One day in middle school, he read a school library book about making motion pictures and  “actually fell in love with how motion pictures were made” (2). To him animation was the perfect combination of art and story-telling. From then on he knew he wanted to make animated films.

Floyd Norman working on Walt Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" (c. 1957). Photographer unknown. Image source.

Floyd Norman’s Earliest Work

After high school, Norman studied illustration at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. One of his earliest jobs was working “an assistant to Katy Keene comic book artist Bill Woggon, who lived in … Santa Barbara, California” (1) where Norman grew up. In 1957 Disney Studios hired him as an inbetweener becoming Disney’s first African American artist “to remain at the studio on a long-term basis” (1). In animation filmmaking, an inbetweener was an artist who drew the intermediate frames between the keyframes. This process aimed “to create the illusion of movement by smoothly transitioning one image into another” (3). Much of the work done by inbetweeners is now handled by computer software. The first project Norman worked on was “Sleeping Beauty” released in 1959. Shortly after that Norman was drafted into the army. (1)

Floyd Norman’s Work for Disney

In 1960, after his stint in the army ended “Norman returned to the Disney studio to work on One Hundred and One Dalmatians” (1961) (4). He later worked on Sword in the Stone (1963) and then was assigned to the story department (1) to work with Larry Clemmons one of Disney’s original animators (5) on The Jungle Book (1967).

Floyd Norman, sketch for "Jungle Book", Walt Disney Studios (1967). Image source.

Norman and Leo Sullivan Establish Vignette Films

Walt Disney died in 1966, prompting Norman to leave Disney in search of other opportunities. Along with director and animator Leo Sullivan, Norman established Vignette Films, “one of the first companies to produce films on the subject of black history" (1).

Norman and Sullivan produced animated segments for the new children’s show Sesame Street and an animated NBC television special for Bill Cosby in 1969.

Norman’s Work in the 1970s and 1980s

In the early 1970s Norman returned to Disney as animator on Robin Hood (1973). (1) During the rest of the decade he worked for various animation studios including “Hanna-Barbera, Film Roman, Ruby-Spears Productions” (4). He served as layout artist on Josie and the Pussycats, Sealab 2020, and Laff-A-Lympics. (1)

Floyd Norman, sketch for "Robin Hood", Walt Disney Studios (1973). Image source.

During the 1980s Norman was a layout artist, story director, and storyboard artist for the animated television show “The Smurfs Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions…based on the Belgian comic series of the same name” (6). During the 1980s Disney Publications contacted Norman and asked him to write for the Mickey Mouse comic strip. Despite working in the story department back on the production of "The Jungle Book", Norman was surprised he was being hired as a writer since he always thought of himself primarily as an artist. (2) He was a writer and scripter for the Mickey Mouse comic strip from the mid-1980s until the strip ended in 1995. (1)

Norman’s wife illustrator Adrienne Brown also worked for Disney Publications. While there is no definitive information on how or when the couple met, they could have met during the 1980s while both working for Disney Publications.

Floyd Norman’s Later Work

In the 1990s Norman returned to Walt Disney Animation Studios yet again to work on “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1996), "Mulan" (1998), and “Toy Story 2” (1999).  At the close of the 1990s Norman and his Vignette Films partner Leo Sullivan expanded into a new technology by creating “Afrokids®.com, an Internet site that promotes multicultural and African American images to children” (4). While the Afrokids website no longer exists, a Facebook page and an Instagram account are devoted to its content.

Floyd Norman, Sketch for "Toy Story 2", Pixar Animation (2001). Image source.

Norman officially retired in 2001 after working on Pixar Animation Studios’ computer-animated feature, “Monsters, Inc.”, however, at 89 years young Norman occasionally works on projects as a freelance consultant or storyboard artist. (1)

Floyd Norman’s Legacy

Norman shared his experiences working as a professional animator in several books he authored, including a semi-biographical animation primer, titled: Animated Life: A Lifetime of Tips, Tricks, Techniques and Stories from an Animation Legend published in 2013. In 2017 he illustrated the book A Kiss Goodnight written by Richard M. Sherman (1) and, in 2016 Michael Fiore and Erik Sharkey directed a documentary film about the artist "Floyd Norman: An Animated Life". (7)

Norman is recognized for his contributions both to animated film and to the promotion of African-American history and culture. He “was inducted into the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1979” (1) and “named a Disney Legend in 2007” (1). He received an honorary Doctorate of Philosophy degree from Cogswell Polytechnical College in 2018; the following year he was awarded with the Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Cartoonists Society. (1)

References

Wikipedia.com, (12 November, 2024) Floyd Norman. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floyd_Norman

Mims, S., (10 September, 2015). Interview with Disney Animation Legend Floyd Norman. https://www.rogerebert.com/interviews/interview-with-disney-animation-legend-floyd-norman

Wikipedia.com, (5 December, 2024). Inbetweening. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inbetweening

Bourlin, O., (10 September, 2015). Floyd Norman, (1935 -  ) https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/norman-floyd-e-1935/

Wikipedia.com, (15 August, 2024). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Clemmons

Wikipedia.com, (27 December, 2024). The Smurfs (1981 TV series). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Smurfs_(1981_TV_series)

Imdb.com, (n.d.). Floyd Norman: An Animated Life. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5507860/