Georgina von Etzdorf
Encyclopedia
Georgina von Etzdorf (born 1 January 1955) is a British
textile
designer
whose eponymous fashion label was renowned for its luxurious velvet
scarves
and clothing accessories.
, Peru
to a Prussia
n father and English mother. She lived in Peru till the age of five when her family returned to the UK. She has often claimed that her early years in Peru strongly influenced her dynamic sense of colour and texture.
Von Etzdorf studied textile design at Camberwell School of Art in London
, graduating in 1977. At Camberwell she met Martin Simcock, who later joined her as one of the co-founders and partners of the Georgina von Etzdorf label. The third co-founder and partner was Jonathan Docherty, who studied industrial design at Central School of Art in London and who was a school friend of Simcock.
In 1984 Georgina von Etzdorf made its first appearance as a fashion label at the autumn London Designer shows previewing accessories, scarves and ties. In 1985 they produced their first full clothing collection.
In 1986 Georgina von Etzdorf opened its first London shop in Burlington Arcade. That was followed in 1988 by a second shop off Sloane Street in Chelsea. By the mid-1990s the company was selling in 400 shops in 25 countries around the world, and had a concession in both Barney’s in New York and Selfridges in London. In addition to its signature scarves and ties, the company diversified into a wide range of men’s and women’s wear such as dinner jackets, dressing gowns, sleepwear, shoes, gloves, belts, hats as well as household items such as kelims and cushions.
As the company expanded its product range it also entered into an increasing number of collaborations, including hats with Gabriella Ligenza, shoes with Emma Hope and rugs with Christopher Farr.
Although famed for its velvet scarves – which innovated the use of velvet as daywear – Georgina von Etzdorf was also widely admired for its skill in printing and experimenting with texture and technique on what are considered more difficult fabrics such as textured chiffon and organza, mohair, fine cashmeres, satin, rayon fur, chenille and wool boucle as well as using complex techniques such as devore, laser printing, leather and plastic printing
Georgina von Etzdorf products have been worn and sought after by rock stars and royalty. On one occasion, the EMI record label in the UK gave 58 of its key artists – including The Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, Robbie Williams and the Pet Shop Boys - Georgina von Etzdorf dressing gowns for Christmas. Diana, the Princess of Wales, was famously photographed wearing a Donald Campbell dress made from von Etzdorf’s Poppy design.
In 1996 she was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Design by Winchester School of Art. She was made an Honorary Fellow of the University of the Arts, London in 1999.
Among many industry awards are the BBC 4 Radio Enterprise Award for Small Businesses (1984), British Apparel Export Award (1986), the Manchester Prize for Art and Industry, British Gas Award (1988). In 2006 the company was honoured by a 25-year retrospective exhibition at Manchester City Art Gallery.
In February 2011, von Etzdorf was one of a group of designers asked to design and furnish a bedouin-style tent set up at the Eden Project in Cornwall to publicise the work of the charity Shelterbox , which provides emergency shelter and disaster relief.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
textile
Textile
A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...
designer
Designer
A designer is a person who designs. More formally, a designer is an agent that "specifies the structural properties of a design object". In practice, anyone who creates tangible or intangible objects, such as consumer products, processes, laws, games and graphics, is referred to as a...
whose eponymous fashion label was renowned for its luxurious velvet
Velvet
Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed,with a short dense pile, giving it a distinctive feel.The word 'velvety' is used as an adjective to mean -"smooth like velvet".-Composition:...
scarves
Scarf
A scarf is a piece of fabric worn around the neck, or near the head or around the waist for warmth, cleanliness, fashion or for religious reasons. They can come in a variety of different colours.-History:...
and clothing accessories.
Biography
Von Etzdorf was born in 1955 in LimaLima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
to a Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
n father and English mother. She lived in Peru till the age of five when her family returned to the UK. She has often claimed that her early years in Peru strongly influenced her dynamic sense of colour and texture.
Von Etzdorf studied textile design at Camberwell School of Art in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, graduating in 1977. At Camberwell she met Martin Simcock, who later joined her as one of the co-founders and partners of the Georgina von Etzdorf label. The third co-founder and partner was Jonathan Docherty, who studied industrial design at Central School of Art in London and who was a school friend of Simcock.
Career
Von Etzdorf spent several years as a freelance designer before she, Simcock and Docherty founded the Georgina von Etzdorf Partnership in 1981, basing themselves originally in a garage and stable at von Etzdorf’s parents’ house where they set up a silk screen printing workshop. Their plan was originally to produce fabric for third-party fashion houses but took the decision to produce in-house because of their failure to find commercial printers willing to adapt their processes to the challenge of printing von Etzdorf’s designs.In 1984 Georgina von Etzdorf made its first appearance as a fashion label at the autumn London Designer shows previewing accessories, scarves and ties. In 1985 they produced their first full clothing collection.
In 1986 Georgina von Etzdorf opened its first London shop in Burlington Arcade. That was followed in 1988 by a second shop off Sloane Street in Chelsea. By the mid-1990s the company was selling in 400 shops in 25 countries around the world, and had a concession in both Barney’s in New York and Selfridges in London. In addition to its signature scarves and ties, the company diversified into a wide range of men’s and women’s wear such as dinner jackets, dressing gowns, sleepwear, shoes, gloves, belts, hats as well as household items such as kelims and cushions.
As the company expanded its product range it also entered into an increasing number of collaborations, including hats with Gabriella Ligenza, shoes with Emma Hope and rugs with Christopher Farr.
Although famed for its velvet scarves – which innovated the use of velvet as daywear – Georgina von Etzdorf was also widely admired for its skill in printing and experimenting with texture and technique on what are considered more difficult fabrics such as textured chiffon and organza, mohair, fine cashmeres, satin, rayon fur, chenille and wool boucle as well as using complex techniques such as devore, laser printing, leather and plastic printing
Georgina von Etzdorf products have been worn and sought after by rock stars and royalty. On one occasion, the EMI record label in the UK gave 58 of its key artists – including The Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, Robbie Williams and the Pet Shop Boys - Georgina von Etzdorf dressing gowns for Christmas. Diana, the Princess of Wales, was famously photographed wearing a Donald Campbell dress made from von Etzdorf’s Poppy design.
Awards
Von Etzdorf was appointed a Royal Designer for Industry (RDI) by the Royal Society of Arts in 1997.In 1996 she was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Design by Winchester School of Art. She was made an Honorary Fellow of the University of the Arts, London in 1999.
Among many industry awards are the BBC 4 Radio Enterprise Award for Small Businesses (1984), British Apparel Export Award (1986), the Manchester Prize for Art and Industry, British Gas Award (1988). In 2006 the company was honoured by a 25-year retrospective exhibition at Manchester City Art Gallery.
Personal
In her spare time Von Etzdorf is an accomplished ukulele player. She is also an enthusiastic supporter and participant in the Singing for the Brain project, instigated and developed by the Alzheimer’s Society.In February 2011, von Etzdorf was one of a group of designers asked to design and furnish a bedouin-style tent set up at the Eden Project in Cornwall to publicise the work of the charity Shelterbox , which provides emergency shelter and disaster relief.
Further reading
- “Georgina von Etzdorf, Sensuality, Art and Fabric (The Cutting Edge)” by Nilgin Yusuf (Thames and Hudson1988) ISBN 0500018596
- “Fashion Accessories: The Complete 20th Century Sourcebook” by John Peacock. (Thames and Hudson 2000) ISBN 9780500019979
- “Twentieth Century Pattern Design” by Lesley Jackson (Princeton Architectural Press 2007) ISBN 1568987129
- “1980s Fashion Print: A Sourcebook” by Marnie Fogg (Batsford 2009) ISBN 9781906388416
- “Scarves” by Nicky Albrechtsen and Fola Solanke ( Thames & Hudson (14 Mar 2011) ISBN 9780500515648