Details
Including one ice blue silk dress with beaded velvet overlay to skirt and cuffs, and one high neck long sleeve celadon satin two-piece ensemble comprising a button back coat and trousers with 18th century embroidered appliqués
4112 in. (103 cm.) long (the dress)
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Lot Essay

Iris Apfel was a connoisseur of textiles, having traveled the globe sourcing the finest historic fabrics to replicate in the contemporary for New York based firm, Old World Weavers. Iris built and owned the textile company with her husband Carl from 1950 until they sold it to STARK Carpets in 1992. The pair embarked on frequent overseas adventures together to secure unique, regional fabrics that furnished such iconic endeavors as the White House interiors for no less than nine administrations.

Their business ventures became part of the fabric of their lives, quite literally, as Iris often used flea market finds to create outfits of her own design, inspired by various time periods and cultures. Just as they outfitted furnishings and spaces with an appreciation and knowledge of the old and new, Iris employed the same approach to dressing herself.

The range of colors and combinations in this collection represent a mix of high and low, from runway showstoppers to material remnants of times gone by. Hers is an original aesthetic that over the years has become recognized and acquired by institutions such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Peabody Essex Museum.

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Unapologetically Iris: The Collection of Iris Apfel
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