WT Benda

I have always admired the work of WT Benda, his art and illustrations are so evocative of their era, he was a major influence in fashion, art and advertising throughout the Art Deco period and his masks were out of this world...

Władysław Teodor "W.T." Benda (January 15, 1873, Poznań, Poland (Posen, German Empire) - November 30, 1948, Newark, New Jersey) was a Polish-American painter, illustrator, and designer.

The son of musician Jan Szymon Benda, and a nephew of the actress Helena Modrzejewska (known in the United States as Helena Modjeska), W.T. Benda studied art at the Krakow College of Technology and Art in his native Poland and at the School of Fine Arts in Vienna, Austria. He came to the United States at the very end of the 19th century, to visit his Aunt Helena, who then lived in California. He stayed, and moved to New York City in 1902, where he attended the Art Students League of New York and the William Merritt Chase School. While there, Benda studied under Robert Henri and Edward Penfield.

He joined the Society of Illustrators in 1907, the Architectural League in 1916, and became a naturalized American in 1911. He was also a member of the National Society of Mural Painters. He remained in NYC for the rest of his life. Benda married Romola Campfield, and they had two daughters, Eleanora and Baria, who were both artists.

Starting in 1905, Benda was primarily a graphic artist. He illustrated books, short stories, advertising copy, and magazine covers for Collier's, McCall's, Ladies' Home Journal, Good Housekeeping, Theatre Magazine and many others. Many publishers regarded Benda as their go-to artist for his dependability and artistic abilities. In his time he was as well known as Norman Rockwell, N.C. Wyeth or Maxfield Parrish. During the 1920s/1930s every publication sought the look of "the American Girl," but Benda's beautiful women were often exotic and mysterious, not homespun pretty like the girls of Harrison Fisher or Howard Chandler Christy. Benda was fiercely proud of his Polish heritage and became closely associated with the Polish-American cultural institution, The Kosciuszko Foundation.  During the two World Wars he designed many posters for both Poland and America. He was honoured with the ‘Polonia Restituta’ decoration by the Polish government following World War I.

Beginning in 1914, Benda was also an accomplished mask maker and costume designer. His sculpted, papier-mache face masks were used in plays and dances and often in his own paintings and illustrations. They were used in masques or miracle plays in New York City at venues like the New York Coffee House. Benda also created the masks for stage productions in New York and London for such writers as Eugene O'NeilNoel Coward. He became so well-known as a mask maker that his name became synonymous for any life-like mask, whether it was of his design or not. Benda also created "grotesque" masks, which were more fantasy or caricature in nature. Benda created the original mask design for the movie The Mask of Fu Manchu, which was originally published as a twelve part serial in and Collier's from May 7, 1932 through July 23, 1932. The cover of the May 7 issue presented a stunning portrait by Benda. In the latter stages of his career, Benda spent less time doing illustration and more time making masks.

October 5th 1922

Articles by and about Benda and his masks appeared regularly in many of the same magazines and publications that carried his illustrations. In the 1930s he authored the Encyclopedia Britannica entry on masks. He also wrote a book, Masks (Watson-Guptill, 1944, currently out of print), a study of his own designs and unique construction techniques. The Polish Museum of America possesses a collection of Benda's posters for the relief effort in Poland.

 

  

June 15th 1922

March 8th 1923

 Photography by Steichen, models wearing masks by WT Benda

WT Benda with a Grotesque mask, accompanied by the dancer Margaret Severn with a lifelike mask.

I would love one of his paintings.

Text Source from Wikipedia

Barbara Hulanicki

My big Sister flew the nest in the mid seventies and headed to London to seek adventure, she left me, her seven year old little sister behind, she returned home often and started telling me wondrous stories about an emporium called BIBA, to me it sounded like Aladdins Cave, full of exotic and beautiful treasures, she often came home bearing gifts from this hallowed place, strings of beads, feather boas, patterned scarves and beautifully packaged eye shadows and lipsticks, all which went lovingly into my dressing up box.

Sadly by the time I flew the nest and headed down to London, BIBA was no longer but thanks to my Sister I have had a lifelong fascination for all things BIBA and it's creator Barbara Hulanicki.

Born in Warsaw in 1936, to Polish parents, after studying at Brighton School of Art, now the University of Brighton Faculty of Arts, Hulanicki won a London Evening Standard competition for beachwear in 1955. She began her career in fashion as a freelance fashion illustrator, working for various magazines, including Vogue, Tatler and Women's Wear Daily.

Hulanicki sold her first designs through a small mail-order business, featured in the fashion columns of newspapers such as the Daily Mirror.  In 1964 she opened her Biba shop in Kensington, with the help of her late husband, Stephen Fitz-Simon.

The shop soon became famous for its stylishly decadent atmosphere and lavish decor inspired by Art Nouveau and Art Deco. It became a hangout for artists film stars and rock musicians, including Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Marianne Faithfull and Cathy McGowan, presenter of Ready Steady Go!, among the regulars. In the shop affordable mini-skirts, floppy felt hats, feather boas, velvet trouser suits and unisex T-shirts dyed in rich, muted colors were eagerly snapped up by a young clientele. Anna Wintour got her start in fashion as a BIBA employee.

The First BIBA store was an Old Chemist shop in Abingdon Road, but by the time it closed it doors in 1976 it had evolved into an elaborate 5-story, Art Deco department store with a restaurant and a roof garden, overlooking High Street Kensington.

The avant-garde BIBA cosmetic brand was being sold in 33 countries across the globe.

BIBA finally closed it's doors in 1976, a victim of corporate raiding before the term had even entered the business vernacular.  But the scene was set, BIBA was the blueprint for a new style of fashion store, shops like Bus Stop and Top Shop started to spring up following the BIBA example.

The BIBA look has now become iconic and a firm favourite for stylists and glossy magazines.

Twiggy

Kate Moss

Gloria Swanson  Edward Steichen

The inspiration for the BIBA look came from the Twenties and Thirties, these two Steichen photographs look as if they could have been part of a BIBA campaign.

Marion Morehouse and Helen Lyons, Edward Steichen

After the closure of Biba, Hulanicki continued to work in the fashion industry, designing for such fashion designers as Fiorucci and Cacharel and for twelve years, from 1980 to 1992, designed a successful line of children's wear, Minirock, licensed to the Japanese market.

From 1990 to 2006, Hulanicki has perhaps had the most impact on Miami Beach through her work for Chris Blackwell and his Island Outpost Group. She twice reconceived the MARLIN Hotel, on Collins Avenue, as well as the CAVALIER Hotel, Ocean Drive, the LESLIE Hotel, Ocean drive, The NETHERLANDS building, Ocean Drive, and the KENT on Collins Avenue. Other Caribbean properties she has designed for Blackwell include the COMPASS POINT Hotel and beach resort in Nassau, Bahamas - which is prominently featured in all the Bahamian Tourist Board television commercials - the PINK SANDS resort on Harbor Island, Bahamas. In 1993 Hulanicki won an award from the American Institute of Architects for her work on the NETHERLANDS, as well as an award from an association of Florida Architects. Hulanicki's other projects have included private luxury homes on Palm Island and Dilido Island in Miami as well as several commercial properties, including the BEACH HOUSES at CORAL SANDS HOTEL on Harbor Island, Bahamas and hotel development for Chris Blackwell's GOLDENEYE in Oracabessa, Jamaica

One of the crowning achievements of Hulanicki's impact can be witnessed in the opening of the Hollywood hit movie "The Birdcage". A sweeping helicopter shot flows over the waves to zero in on the primary location for the film, the Cleveland Hotel on Ocean Drive, which is flanked by no less than four Hulanicki-designed buildings - the Leslie, the Cardozo, the Cavalier and the Netherlands. Additionally, throughout her career, Hulanicki has designed costumes for several stage and film productions, including clothing for Cathy McGowan on the influential live TV rock show "READY STEADY GO" (1964), outfits for Julie Christie in "DARLING" (1965), costumes for local productions in Miami Beach, costumes for old friend and Biba model Twiggy for "CAPTAIN BEAKY" in London's West End and her Royal Command Performance in 1976. From 2001 to 2002 she worked on the Island life Ministore, located in the heart of Miami Beach on Ocean Drive. Hulanicki renovated this unique shop at owner Chris Blackwell's request. Coined as "tropical lux," this lifestyle store contained a large collection of ethnic gift items, music, film, jewelry and accessories from around the world. It also boasted men's, women's and children's apparel custom designed by Hulanicki.

In 2003 she delved back into product and fashion design, with a collection of handbags for Coccinelle, Italy, Wallpapers and Illustrations for Graham and Brown, both of which still retain her to design new collections. She has also designed Wallpaper and textile designs for HABITAT stores in the UK. In 2008 she went back to her roots and designed a fashion collection for TOP SHOP, which included her fashion illustrations used as prints. The Victoria and Albert Museum recently republished her memoirs FROM A TO BIBA and accompanied the book launch with a range of her jewelry and scarf designs. Subsequently her autobiography inspired November Films, an Independent Film Company, to document her life and career in a recently released feature film called BEYOND BIBA.

 To find out more about Barbara Hulanicki and her latest projects visit her at:


http://www.barbarahulanickidesign.com/main.htm

Richard Saker 

I was very distressed to find the film documentary 'Beyond Biba' was broadcast on the British Sky Arts Channel on August 17th, can't believe I missed it, that will teach me to remember to look at the TV listings! the book and DVD are going on my wishlist!

Book and DVD available here

Text Sources from Wikipedia and barbarahulanickidesign.com