Eszter Haraszty
Eszter Haraszty | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1920 Hungary |
| Died | 1994 Los Angeles |
| Education | Hungarian University of Fine Arts |
| Known for | Graphic design, Textiles |
Eszter Haraszty (1920-1994) was a Hungarian-born designer best known for her work as head of the textiles department at Knoll.
Career
Haraszty was born in Hungary and received her education from the Hungarian University of Fine Arts in Budapest.[1] After Hans Knoll saw her portfolio, he hired her as a textiles designer at his company, Knoll, where she began working under Marianne Strengell. In 1949, Haraszty was appointed director of KnollTextiles (the Knoll textiles department), a position she held until 1955.[2] Her designs were very colorful and often floral; she was best known for her Iceland poppy motif.[3] Under Haraszty, KnollTextiles explored then-novel fabrics, such as nylon.[4]
In addition to her work at Knoll, Haraszty consulted at Victor Gruen Associates and IBM, as well as designing a line of women's clothing for B.H. Wragge. She also designed restaurant interiors at Expo 58 in Brussels and a children's playground for American President Lines.[1] As a lecturer at UCLA, Haraszty taught a course called "Design From Nature."[1]
Over the course of her career, Haraszty was awarded five gold medals from the Association of Interior Designers for her textile designs, as well as an award from the Pasadena Art Museum.[1] Many of her prints and textile samples are now part of museum collections, including the Museum of Modern Art; Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum; the Victoria and Albert Museum; and the Château Dufresne.[1][4]
Personal life
Haraszty quit Knoll to move to Coldwater Canyon, where she and her husband renovated a house in her signature bright colors and florals.[5]
References
- ^ a b c d e Oliver, Myrna (30 November 1994). "Eszter Haraszty; Designer With Penchant for Poppies". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ^ "Knoll Designer Bios: Eszter Haraszty". Knoll. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ^ Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. "Eszter Haraszty". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ^ a b Fehrman, Cherie; Fehrman, Kenneth (2009). Interior Design Innovators 1910-1960. Fehrman Books. p. 68.
- ^ Owens, Mitchell (15 August 1999). "Classical Furniture Upstaged by Flower Power". New York Times. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
External links
- Textile samples designed by Haraszty at the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
- Textile samples designed by Haraszty at the Museum of Modern Art
- Our Tools, Our Time: Women at MoMA from Kroll