The New School Archives And Special Collections

Summary A collection of approximately thirty discrete audio recordings documenting designer critic sessions in the Fashion Design Department of Parsons School of Design. Designer critics include Parsons School of Design alumni, such as Adri, Jeffrey Banks, Donald Brooks, Louis Dell'Olio, Isaac Mizrahi, Charlotte Neuville, and Tracy Reese, as well as frequent visitors Stan Herman and Gloria Sachs and longtime faculty members Frank Rizzo and Marie Essex. The recordings were made during...

Abstract

Chester Weinberg (1931-1985) graduated from Parsons School of Design in 1951 and served as visiting lecturer on fashion design there from 1955 to 1985. Weinberg established his own label in 1966. He later became a consultant and was named design director of Calvin Klein jeans in 1981. The collection contains a scrapbook of news clippings, fashion print ads, and photographs mainly chronicling Weinberg’s work from 1966 to 1975.

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Norman Norell (1900-1972) was the first American fashion designer to compete successfully with French couture. In 1943, he received the first Coty American Fashion Critics Award, and was inducted into the Coty Hall of Fame in 1956. Norell served as a visiting critic at Parsons School of Design from 1943 to 1972. The collection includes biographical material, clippings, sketches, photographs, scrapbooks, and five examples of Norell's clothing.

Summary

This collection is comprised of audiovisual recordings primarily commissioned by Parsons School of Design. Most of the recordings are of the Parsons Fashion Design Department's annual scholarship benefit and runway show. Also included in the collection are recordings of junior year presentations, promotional films about Parsons, and a Japanese-language film created by the United States Information Agency featuring a Parsons fashion student.

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In 1950, fashion designer James Galanos (1924- ) started Jimi Originals with Mary Scourby. The company only existed for a short time, but it was the first company to market Galanos' creations under his name. The collection consists of twelve Jimi Originals fashion sketches as well as invoices and notes. Galanos was a critic at Parsons School of Design from 1962 to 1968.

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Mary Adrienne Steckling Coen (1934-2006) graduated from Parsons School of Design's Fashion Design Department in 1958. In 1966, "Adri" --her professional name-- created her own line, designing under her own labels for the rest of her career. The records document Adri's professional life, with items arranged by year and season. Includes clippings and tear sheets, photographs, press kits, sketches, swatches, and video recordings.

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After graduating from the New York School of Fine and Applied Art (later, Parsons School of Design) in 1934, Tom Brigance (1913-1990) became a fashion designer specializing in women's swimwear and sportswear. The collection includes scrapbooks of clippings and photographs of Brigance's designs, sketches, publicity materials, and four original fashion illustrations of Brigance swimwear by Dorothy Hood, produced for Lord & Taylor.

Abstract Fashion illustrator Michaele Vollbracht (1947-2018) graduated from Parsons in 1968, and returned periodically as a visiting critic. After working as a design assistant for Geoffrey Beene, Donald Brooks, and Norman Norell, Vollbracht turned to fashion illustration and portraiture. In 1985 Vollbracht published Nothing Sacred, an illustrated memoir, and in 2000 Parsons mounted an exhibition to celebrate the release of an updated version of the book....

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Claire McCardell (1905-1958) graduated from the New York School of Fine and Applied Art (later, Parsons School of Design) in 1928 and later became a pivotal figure in American ready-to-wear fashion. In 1944, McCardell returned to Parsons as a critic and instructor, a position she held for the rest of her life. The collection contains roughly 9,000 of McCardell's sketches, dated 1931 to 1958; mostly produced for Townley Frocks.