The Marketing Files were among the resource collections available in the library's former Vertical Files unit. The Vertical Files unit was located in the library’s former Reference Room, with a service desk near the Reference Desk. The Vertical Files footprint was largely composed of dozens of filing cabinets filled with research materials that were gathered, processed, and organized by the staff over decades. These unique resource collections included Forecasting services, Designer Files, Picture Files, Fashion Files, Costume Files, and Marketing Files. This unit was closed in January, 1996, and these files were reassigned to other units within the library. The Marketing Files were the last collection from Vertical Files to be assigned a permanent home when they came to Special Collections and College Archives in 2016.
During the 1930's, 40's and the early 50's, when hats were considered required accessories for well-dressed women, Sally (Josephs) Victor (1905 - 1977) was among the foremost American milliners. She first started making hats at Macy's in 1924, then for L. Bamberger & Co. In 1927 Sally married Sergiu F. Victor, a hat manufacturer. In the late 1920's and early 1930's she worked designing hats for him. Opening in 1934 on 53rd Street in New York, Sally Victor's own millinery business grew to become on of the largest hat companies in the USA. She was one of the members of the Edward C. Blum Design Laboratory, and often used the Brooklyn Museum's collections to draw inspiration for her designs. She was so connected with the Design Lab that she participated in several collaborative exhibitions at the museum. Her work is characterized by a special quirkiness that could often be traced back to interesting sources such as Native American tribes, the artist Henri Matisse or Japanese armor. She also combined traditional hat-making materials such as felt and silk with new synthetic materials in unique ways. In the early 1950's Victor's Airwaves hat, which resembled a cut-out pie crust, was popularized when Mamie Eisenhower wore one to the Presidential inauguration. A new, lower-cost line which was geared toward a younger customer, Sally V, was launched in the 1950's. The business closed in 1965. According to her May 16, 1977 obituary in the ''New York Times,'' Victor described her mission simply as "designing pretty hats that make women look prettier."
Madeleine Vionnet was called the "Queen of the bias cut" and "the architect among dressmakers," She is best-known today for her elegant Grecian-style dresses and for introducing the bias cut to the fashion world. Born in June 22, 1876 into a poor family in Chilleur-aux-Bois, Loiret, she began her apprenticeship as a seamstress at age 11. After a brief marriage at age 18, she left her husband and went to London to work as a hospital seamstress. She eventually returned to Paris and trained with the well known fashion house Callot Soeurs and later with Jacques Doucet.
In 1912 she founded her own fashion house, "Vionnet", for a short time just before World War I. The House of Vionnet grew to employ over 1,100 seamstresses and was the first fashion house to create ready to wear (prêt-à-porter) designs from haute couture for sale in the United States.
In 1922 Vionnet's extravagant designs were inspired by Greek vases and Egyptian frescoes. She invents a "bias" cut to make dresses that fit tightly at the waist and flare out into a bell-shape skirt. She designed "seam decorations" decorating visible seams in star or flower shapes in 1925.
With her bias cut clothes, Vionnet dominated haute couture in the 1930s setting trends with her sensual gowns. Vionnet's vision of the female form revolutionized modern clothing and the success of her unique cuts assured her reputation. She fought for copyright laws in fashion and employed what were considered revolutionary labor practices at the time - paid holidays and maternity leave, day-care, a dining hall, a resident doctor and dentist. In 1939 Madeleine Vionnet is awarded the Legion d'Honneur, France's highest honour. Vionnet closed her house when the Second world war started but did not reopen after the war. She lived to the age of 98 and died in 1975.
Until the end of her life, she continued to monitor and comment on haute couture, whose artistry she had done so much for and where she is remembered as one of the greatest designers of all time. Vionnet employed several talented illustrators including Thayaht who drew Vionnet's gowns, which were published in the Paris fashion magazine "Gazette du Bon Ton".
Virginia Commonwealth University is a public research university in Richmond, Virginia. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virginia in 1854.
For award-winning fashion designer Adrienne Vittadini, the blend of Hungarian heritage, American upbringing and Italian sensibility helped propel her to the forefront of international design and made the name Adrienne Vittadini into a global brand.
During her junior year studying fine arts at Philadelphia’s Moore College of Art, Mrs. Vittadini won a fellowship to study with designers Louis Féraud in Paris and Emilio Pucci in Florence. She then pursued a fashion career in New York and Italy as a freelance designer before returning to New York in the early 1970s to design full-time. In 1979, she started her own business, Adrienne Vittadini Inc, with her husband and partner, Gianluigi Vittadini.
For over three decades, Mrs. Vittadini communicated her sophisticated fashion esthetic by combining casually elegant career dressing with smart, sporty weekend wear. Her designs seamlessly transitioned women from home to office to leisure time. Wonderfully textured knits, novelty pieces, refined basics and stylish outerwear became the Vittadini signature while international licenses for accessories, fragrances and home décor further enhanced her worldwide reputation.
Mrs. Vittadini has received countless prestigious fashion awards including the coveted Coty American Fashion Critics Award in 1984; the Dallas Designer Sportswear Award in 1985; the Albert Einstein Spirit of Achievement Award for Design and Business in 1987; the Fashion Group International Award for Women Who Have Influenced Fashion in 1990; the Metropolitan Home: The Design 100 Award in 1992; The Art of Achievement Award and the Top 50 Women Business Owners in 1993; the Cancer Care Fashion Leadership Award in 1996 and the Moore College of Art Visionary Woman Award in 2003. She was also elected to the International Best Dressed Hall of Fame.
Today Mrs. Vittadini remains passionate about art, architecture and design. She and her husband concentrate their efforts today on developing luxury residential properties through their new business venture, AGV Design & Development LLC. They are currently developing properties in Florida as well as condominiums in the Italian Alps. As a design consultant, she lent her expertise on Le Grand Cottages at Ambergris Cay Sporting Club in Turks and Caicos, and recently led the architectural design committee for The Concession Golf Club and Residences, a premier golf and country-club community in Sarasota, Florida under the aegis of Jack Nicklaus.
Roger Vivier was a French shoe designer.
Born in 1907, Roger Vivier, known as the Fabergé of footwear, created shoes that looked like works of art. In 1924, he began his sculpture studies at the Paris School of Fine Arts, which he abandoned two years later to learn the art of shoemaking and start an apprenticeship. Fascinated by the world of theatre and music halls, Vivier designed some stage decors. Backstage, he met Josephine Baker and Mistinguett, for whom he created custom-made shoes.
Following the success of his footwear creations, in 1937 he opened his first boutique on rue Royale in Paris. Heels were his field of excellence - he was the father to the Aiguille stiletto, launched in 1954, and the sinuous Virgule heel, considered the manifesto of his namesake label since 1963. He was a skillful artisan with a genuine passion for feminine elegance and a flair for elevating shoes to proper works of art, working hand in hand with celebrated French embroidery houses.
Vivier designed shoes for house Christian Dior from 1953 to 1963. In addition to the stiletto heel, he also experimented with other shapes, including the comma. He used silk, pearls, beads, lace, appliqué and jewels to create unique decorations for his shoes.
Roger Vivier is often remembered for dressing a list of exceptional women. Not only did he design the shoes Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II worn in 1953 on her coronation day, he also crafted acclaimed creations for the greatest personalities of his times: the Duchess of Windsor, Princess Soraya of Iran, Marlene Dietrich, Elizabeth Taylor, Brigitte Bardot and, of course, Catherine Deneuve in “Belle de Jour”, the film in which the iconic heels featuring the silver buckle made their first appearance.
Vogue is an American monthly fashion and lifestyle magazine covering many topics including fashion, beauty, culture, living, and runway based in New York City. According to Vogue's website, "For 125 years now, the magazine has been registering both sartorial and societal shifts, changes charted across glossy pages and covers." Vogue was founded by American businessman, Arthur Baldwin Turnure, in 1892 as "a dignified authentic journal of society, fashion, and the ceremonial side of life." In 1909, the magazine was purchased by Condé Nast and remains under the Condé Nast publishing empire as of 2020.
Michaele Vollbracht was an American fashion designer who has worked both under his own name, and also as head designer for Bill Blass Limited. He was also well known as an illustrator.
Joan Volpe is a professor in the Business department at the Fashion Institute of Technology and managing coordinator of the Center for Professional Studies.
Diane von Furstenberg was born in 1946 in Brussels, Belgium. She met her first husband, Prince Egon zu Furstenberg, and they moved to New York after marrying in 1969. She began designing clothes in 1970 and created her now-iconic wrap dress two years later. She won a lifetime achievement award from the CFDA and in 2011 unveiled a new diffusion line, "Diane." She also won awards for her enduring efforts in combating AIDS and for contributing to the built environment of NYC.
American editor and fashion expert Diana Vreeland was born in 1903. In 1939, she joined Harper's Bazaar and shortly after was appointed fashion editor, being acknowledged as one of the most influential observers of the fashion scene. In 1962, Vreeland left Harper's Bazaar and joined Vogue, of which she became editor in chief in 1963. Later in her life she was named special consultant to the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Jeanette Wagner studied at North Western in the late 1940s. She became a journalist and landed a position at the Hearst Corporation. Her job was to run the international division of the Corp. and starting all of their international magazines. She joined Estée Lauder in 1975.
Biography/current activities: Vice Chairman Emerita of The Estee Lauder Companies Inc., Jeanette Sarkisian Wagner’s career has spanned marketing and general management on both domestic and international fronts. She retired from The Estee Lauder Companies in January 2002. Prior to joining Estee Lauder in 1975, Mrs. Wagner held increasingly responsible editorial and management positions with The Hearst Corporation, including Editor-in-Chief of all International Editions, which she founded, and Director of New Ventures. She was the first female senior editor of The Saturday Evening Post, and an editor at The Chicago Daily News.
"Mrs. Wagner is an active worker on improving public school education in New York City and served as Secretary of the Board of the Fund for Public Schools through Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s term in office. The Mayor of New York City appointed her to the Boards of the Department of Cultural Affairs and New York City Center. Her many honors include a Lifetime Achievement Award from American Women for Economic Development and the “Women Who Inspire Us” honor from the Harvard Business School Network of Women Alumnae."
R.J. Wagner was born 1930 in Detroit, the son of a steel executive. His family moved to Los Angeles when he was seven. Always wanting to be an actor, he held a variety of jobs (including one as a golf caddy for Clark Gable) while pursuing his goal, but it was while dining with his parents at a restaurant in Beverly Hills that he was "discovered" by a talent scout. After making his uncredited screen debut in The Happy Years (1950), Wagner was signed by 20th Century Fox, which carefully built him up toward stardom. He played romantic leads with ease, but it was not until he essayed the two-scene role of a shell-shocked war veteran in With a Song in My Heart (1952) that studio executives recognized his potential as a dramatic actor. He went on to play the title roles in Prince Valiant (1954) and The True Story of Jesse James (1957), and portrayed a cold-blooded murderer in A Kiss Before Dying (1956). In the mid-'60s, however, his film career skidded to a stop after The Pink Panther (1963). Several years of unemployment followed before Wagner made a respectable transition to television as star of the lighthearted espionage series It Takes a Thief (1968). He also starred on the police series Switch (1975), but Wagner's greatest success was opposite Stefanie Powers on the internationally popular Hart to Hart (1979), which ran from 1979 through 1984 and has since been sporadically revived in TV-movie form (another series, Lime Street (1985), was quickly canceled due to the tragic death of Wagner's young co-star, Samantha Smith). Considered one of Hollywood's nicest citizens, Robert Wagner has continued to successfully pursue a leading man career; he has also launched a latter-day stage career, touring with Stefanie Powers in the readers' theater presentation "Love Letters". He found success playing Number Two, a henchman to Dr. Evil in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) and its sequels, and in 2007, he began playing Teddy Leopold, a recurring role on the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men (2003).
"The son of a famous U.S. Senator who was a chief architect of Social Security, Robert Wagner Jr. graduated from Yale University in 1933 and received his law degree from Yale Law School in 1937. Fresh out of law school, Wagner, a lifelong Democrat, was elected to the Assembly, where he served three terms. He enlisted in the Army during World War II, achieving the rank of lieutenant colonel. Upon returning to New York City, Wagner served in different capacities under Mayor O'Dwyer, until he successfully ran for Manhattan Borough President in 1949. In 1953, Wagner ran in the Democratic primary for mayor with the backing of Tammany Hall. He beat Vincent Impellitteri by a large margin and went on to win the general election. At his inauguration, Wagner pledged to create a "government dedicated to the best interest of all people" and extolled the virtue of public service as "among the most noble challenges and among the greatest responsibilities.""
During Wagner's twelve years as mayor, several large scale projects were initiated or completed, such as the construction of the Van Wyck Expressway, the Grand Central Parkway, the Long Island Expressway, the Verrazano-Narrows and Throgs Neck Bridges, Shea Stadium, and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. During Wagner's tenure the city also hosted the 1964-65 World's Fair. Wagner is credited with making gains in slum clearance and the creation of public housing. He reduced corruption in city government and expanded the police force. He appointed talented professionals to serve in his administration and greatly increased the number of minorities in civil service. Twice reelected, Wagner decided not to seek a fourth term in 1965, instead returning to private practice. He was appointed ambassador to Spain from 1968 to 1969, resigning to run unsuccessfully in the mayoral primary. In 1976, President Jimmy Carter named him US representative to the Vatican. He practiced law in New York City and also served on the City Charter Revision Commission in the 1980's. In 1989, New York University named its graduate school of public service in his honor. Wagner died of heart failure at his Manhattan home on February 12, 1991."
Sir Humphrey Wakefield, born in 1936, is an English baronet and expert on antiques and architecture. He had worked for Christie's of London and became director of antique-dealing firms. He restored the Chillingham Castle to house his antiquities and his own collection. He is President of the Northumbrian Mountain Rescue teams and is Chairman of the international Wildnerness Foundation.
Located at 34th Street and Fifth Avenue, the Waldorf Astoria was first two separate hotels owned by John Jacob Astor IV and William Waldorf Astor. They were combined in 1897 to create the largest hotel in the world. After the death of both men, the land was sold in 1928 to a developer who demolished the building and erected the Empire State Building. In 1931 the Waldorf Astoria opened at 301 Park Ave. in New York City.
Mary Edwards Walker was a women’s rights advocate, abolitionist, and spy. She was the first female U.S. Army surgeon during the Civil War, and the only woman to receive the Presidential Medal of Honor.
Walmart, in full Walmart, Inc., formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., American operator of discount stores that was one of the world’s biggest retailers and among the world’s largest corporations. Company headquarters are in Bentonville, Arkansas.
Barbara Jill Walters (born September 25, 1929) is an American broadcast journalist, author, and television personality. She has hosted morning television shows (Today and The View), the television news magazine (20/20), co-anchored the ABC World News, and is a contributor to ABC News.
Vera Wang is an American fashion designer specializing in bridal wear. Wang got her start in fashion working at Vogue magazine in 1971. She eventually became the senior fashion editor, a title she held for 15 years. In 1987, she left the publication to take a job as a design director for accessories at Ralph Lauren. She opened her bridal boutique in 1990, after designing her own wedding dress the year prior. Her boutique first offered designs from brands including Dior and Carolina Herrera until Wang was able to hone her skills as a fashion designer and create her own signature collection a few years later. Further expansion of her brand includes elegant evening wear, a fragrance, a wedding guide, home products, and an affordable ready-to-wear line with Kohl's called Simply Vera.
Andy Warhol was an American artist, photographer, and illustrator.
In the fashion industry, Gary Wassner, CEO of Hilldun Corporation, known as the company behind many of Seventh Avenue’s most prestigious fashion companies, has provided financing and factoring for many of America’s and the world’s most iconic designer labels. Willi Smith, Derek Lam, Jason Wu, Maria Cornejo, Yeohlee, C.C. Greene, Isabel Marant, Golden Goose, Rebecca Taylor, Tommy Hilfiger, Naeem Kahn, Jonathan Simkhai, Victor Glemaud, Vivienne Westwood, Sacai, John Elliot, Fear of God, Mara Hoffman, Thom Browne, Betsey Johnson and Marc Jacobs are only a few of fashion’s finest that have benefitted from his discerning eyes and business acumen.
Named one of Fashionista’s 50 Most Influential People in Fashion, Gary is also an advisory board member of Fordham Law School’s Fashion Law Institute, a board member of FGI, an instructor for the DENYC program, a board member of the High School of Fashion Industries, a member of FIT’s Social Justice Advisory Council, and a passionate supporter of all causes related to the Fashion Industry in NYC and globally.
In addition to being a force in the fashion industry, he is a well-respected fiction writer and children’s book author. Wassner resides in New York with his wife Cathy and his extended family.
Belgian fashion designer.
French painter and draftsman
John Wayne (1907-1979) was an American film actor, director, and producer.
David Webb was born in in North Carolina in 1925. Webb is a trend-setting jewelrey designer and maker, creating beautiful pieces with precious stones, metals, and enameled animals. Two years after introducing his animal bracelets, he won a Coty award. He was commissioned by President Kennedy to make jeweled paperweight gifts.
American photographer. He studied under Lisette Model and later became a major figure in international fashion photography. His best-known work derives from advertising assignments for the fashion designers Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren and Karl Lagerfeld, presenting the unique synthesis of an uncompromising personal vision with an interpretation of varied historical influences. His low-angle shots of men in heroic poses recall the images of Aryan youths made in the 1930s, while some of his studio portraits evoke the spirit of classic Hollywood portraiture. His work contains a highly charged eroticism and plays on sexual ambiguity, as for example in his photographic journal O Rio de Janiero (New York, 1986).
Born and raised in New York City Norman Wechsler's career started at Saks Fifth Avenue as an executive trainee in the 1930s, later becoming president in the 1970s. In between, working as a trainee and becoming president he worked at other retail organizations including I. Magnin, Hudson’s in Detroit, Weinstock in Sacramento, and Robinson’s in Los Angeles.
Born in Denmark in 1885, Wegener studied art at the Academie des Beaux-Arts in Copenhagen. In 1912, she relocated to Paris with her former teacher and husband, the painter Einar Wegener. Gerda found success almost immediately working as an illustrator for fashion magazines including Journal des dames et des modes, La Baïonnette, La Guirlande, and La Vie Parisienne. Commissions poured in for Wegener, who also worked as a portrait painter and illustrator for numerous volumes of erotica, which are now highly sought-after by collectors of the genre. The Wegeners’ marriage was annulled by the King of Denmark after Einar became the first recorded recipient of a gender reassignment surgery, yet the former spouses remained close. Gerda would later remarry and live in Morocco with her new husband before returning to Denmark, where she died in relative anonymity in 1940.
Chester Weinberg was born in New York and graduated from the Parsons School of Design in 1951. After working for a series of Seventh Avenue manufacturers, he started his own company in 1966. His designs were soft and elegant - ruffles were his signature. In 1978, he joined Calvin Klein as a consultant and became head designer of Calvin Klein jeans in 1981. He won a Coty award in 1970.
Sylvia Weinstock was an American baker and cake decorator. She was known for making delicious, multi-tiered wedding cakes decorated with botanically accurate sugar flowers.
Emanuel Weintraub graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology (New York, N.Y.) in 1947 with a degree in Industrial Management. He went on to become a plant engineer at the Lily of France Corset Company before ultimately founding his own consulting company, Emanuel Weintraub Associates, Inc. Weintraub stayed in close contact with various Fashion Institute of Technology (New York, N.Y.) presidents and was also a faculty member at New York University, serving on the NYU Club's Board of Directors for two years.
Vally Wieselthier (Valerie Wielsethier) was born in 1895 in Vienna, Austria. She started studying at the Vienna School for Applied Arts in 1914, focusing on painting but later switching to the architecture class of Josef Hoffman. In 1917, she attended the ceramics workshop headed by Michael Powolny. Wieselthier joined the newly opened ceramics workshop of the Wiener Werkstätte, working under Hoffman and artistic director Dagobert Peche. Her work is characterized by playful and humorous designs combined with the use of traditional forms and free use of materials. She also designed in other mediums, such as textiles and glass. From 1922 to 1927 she had her own workshop in Vienna. Her ceramic sculptures were represented at the 1925 “Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes” in Paris. In 1927 she returned to the Wiener Werkstätte to head its ceramics workshop. She spent 18 months in New York City between 1927 and 1928 and emigrated to the U.S. in 1932, where she created work for the Contempora Group and Sebring Pottery Company.
John Weitz was born in 1923 in Berlin, and came to the United States in 1939. He served as an O.S.S. officer in World War II and founded John Weitz designs shortly after. He started with creating women's sportswear and entered the menswear arena in 1964. He was one of the first American designers to enter into licensing deals, known for his witty advertisements.
American actor, screenwriter, director, and film producer.
Mary Wells Lawrence, born in 1928, is an American businesswoman who made her mark in advertising during an age when men dominated the field. She cofounded the advertising agency Wells, Rich, Greene Inc. and was noted for her campaigns for Alka Seltzer and Ford Motor Company. Wells was also the first female to be CEO of a company traded on the Big Board of the New York Stock Exchange.
Dan Werle and his business partner Jose Fernandez started their business after World War II and gained a clientele of some of films' best-known women. His creations included ready-to-wear and individual designs. Many of his gowns were shown on national television on Miss Young's "The Loretta Young Show" from 1953-1961.
Grover A. Whalen was a politician and businessman. He was appointed to the position of New York City police commissioner in 1928 and took a strong stance in enforcing prohibition laws. He became president of the New York World’s Fair Corp in 1935 and was later appointed as New York's official greeter.
Clifton R. Wharton Jr. is an economist and corporate executive and was the first African-American president of Michigan State University in 1970.
Margaret Wheelock was born in Scotland and started her career at 16 in a London department store. She founded the 57th street firm in partnership with her sister.
White Stag is an in-store brand of women's clothing and accessories sold by Walmart.
"...Nancy White was born in Brooklyn on July 25, 1916. Her father was in publishing and became general manager of Hearst magazines. She attended the Madeira School in Greenway, Va., where she and Katharine Graham, who was to become publisher of The Washington Post, became lifelong friends. She left Madeira to work during the Depression, her daughter said. At 15, she worked as an errand girl with a magazine, according to an interview with her in The New York Mirror in 1957. (She did not name the magazine.) She returned to the boarding school, and after graduation became an editorial assistant, or ''glorified errand girl,'' in her words, with the magazine Pictorial Review. Her next job, which lasted 16 years, was with Good Housekeeping magazine, where she started as an assistant in the fashion department and left as fashion editor. She joined Harper's as an assistant editor in 1957 and was appointed editor at the beginning of 1958. She was chosen by the previous editor, Carmel Snow, who happened to be her aunt. Diana Vreeland had been another candidate for the top job; she promptly quit. In 1962, Mrs. Vreeland joined Vogue, becoming a legend in the fashion world, and not incidentally Miss White's principal competitor. Under Miss White, Harper's was aimed at stylish women in Des Moines and Omaha as well as in New York and San Francisco. In one issue, 14 pages by Hiro showed models' bodies seeming to disintegrate beneath colorful prints. Yet in the same issue, there was page after black-and-white page of elegantly understated suits and coats. Her comments on pantsuits in a 1964 interview in The New York Times reflected the balance she sought between modernity and moderation. Although she would not wear one to the office herself, she said, pantsuits would be all right for her staff members if they wore ''perfect accessories.'' Miss White resigned in 1971 after James W. Brady, formerly publisher of Women's Wear Daily, was appointed publisher and editorial director of Harper's. Mr. Brady said it was Hearst's decision for him to modernize the magazine....After her resignation, Miss White advised Bergdorf Goodman on fashion for two years and devoted much of the rest of her life to charities, including Lighthouse for the Blind and the public television station WNET. She was first married to Clarence Dauphinot, founder of Deltec International, then to Ralph D. Paine Jr., publisher of Fortune magazine, and then George K. Thompson, her high school sweetheart. The first two marriages ended in divorce, and Mr. Thompson died in 1996....Ms. White had two daughters, Ms. Paine of Durham, N.H., and Gillette Piper of Coral Gables, Fla.; a stepdaughter, Mimi Thompson of Manhattan; a sister, Carmel Eitt of King George, Va.; a brother, John Michael White of Delray Beach, Fla.; three grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren." https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/29/nyregion/nancy-white-85-dies-edited-harper-s-bazaar-in-the-60-s.html
At Harper's Bazaar, Ms. White edited a book celebrating the magazine's 100th anniversary. It was entitled "100 Women of Accomplishment" and was published by Hearst Corporation in 1967. She was a member of the National Council of the Arts (1966-1972) and is a member of the board of directors of General Mills.
Ms. White was born to a fashion and editorial career. Her father, Thomas J. White, was a power in the Hearst publishing empire, which included Harper;s Bazaar; while her aunt, Carmel White Snow, was the creative and authoritative editor of Harper's Bazaar for many years.
Joseph Whitehead always wanted to be a designer. He was born in Norfolk, Virginia but moved to New York after his High School graduation when a high-end retailer invited him to join on a buying trip. Whitehead's first job was working at the Corbeau, Inc. garment factory for $8 a week. Over seven years, Whitehead was able to convince his employers to take his designs seriously and produce them under the Corbeau label. In 1933, Whitehead along with Charles White, a Corbeau employee, teamed up with Joseph Brenner and formed Brenner, Joseph & White. 3 years later, the company was renamed Joseph Whitehead, Inc. after the death of Joseph Brenner. The fashion brand focused primarily on evening wear and were noted as to creating the first dinner-at-home dress. The company closed its doors in 1942.
Whittingham & Humphreys was a London based high-end design firm working in the Victorian era.
Charles Wiedman was an American dancer and choreographer and is considered one of the major innovators of modern dance.
Wiener Werkstätte was an artist collective founded by architect Josef Hoffmann, graphic designer and painter Koloman Moser, and their patron Fritz Waerndorfer. Their aim was to produce high-quality craftwork to fulfill all manner of everyday needs including furniture, houseware, apparel, and works of architecture. They sought to minimize the gap between designers and consumers.
Vally Wieselthier (Valerie Wielsethier) was born in 1895 in Vienna, Austria. She started studying at the Vienna School for Applied Arts in 1914, focusing on painting but later switching to the architecture class of Josef Hoffman. In 1917, she attended the ceramics workshop headed by Michael Powolny. In 1917. Wieselthier joined the newly opened ceramics workshop of the Wiener Werkstätte, working under Hoffman and artistic director Dagobert Peche. Her work is characterized by playful and humorous designs combined with the use of traditional forms and free use of materials. She also designed in other mediums, such as textiles and glass. From 1922 to 1927 she had her own workshop in Vienna. Her ceramic sculptures were represented at the 1925 “Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes” in Paris. In 1927 she returned to the Wiener Werkstätte to head its ceramics workshop. She spent 18 months in New York City between 1927 and 1928 and emigrated to the U.S. in 1932, where she created work for the Contempora Group (collaborating with Paul Poiret) and Sebring Pottery Company.