Elsie de Wolfe - Career

Career

In the 18th century, interior decoration was the purview of upholsterers, (who sold fabrics and furniture), and architects, (who employed a variety of craftsmen and artisans to complete interior design schemes for clients). In the 19th century, the skills of designers such as Candace Wheeler and design firms such as Herter Brothers were well known. De Wolfe reaped publicity, and was one of the field's most famed practitioners in the early 20th century -- a period that also saw an increase of interest in interior design in the popular press. Among her clients were Anne Vanderbilt, Anne Morgan, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Elizabeth Milbank Anderson (philanthropist) and Adelaide and Henry Clay Frick . She transformed the design of wealthy homes from the dark Victorian style into designs featuring light, fresh colors and a reliance on 18th-century French furniture and reproductions.

In her autobiography, de Wolfe—born Ella Anderson de Wolfe and the only daughter of a Canadian-born doctor—calls herself a "rebel in an ugly world." Speaking of herself in the third person, she says that her mother said often that she was ugly, but "just what ugly was she did not know... Now she was to know." Arriving home from school, she found that her parents had redecorated the drawing-room:

She ran ... and looked at the walls, which had been papered in a Morris design of gray palm-leaves and splotches of bright red and green on a background of dull tan. Something terrible that cut like a knife came up inside her. She threw herself on the floor, kicking with stiffened legs, as she beat her hands on the carpet.... she cried out, over and over: "It's so ugly! It's so ugly."

Hutton Wilkinson, president of the Elsie de Wolfe Foundation, notes that of course many things that De Wolfe hated -- such as "pickle and plum Morris furniture," are prized today by museums and designers; he believes that “De Wolfe simply didn’t like Victorian—the high style of her sad childhood&mdash, and chose to banish it from her design vocabulary."

De Wolfe appeared with The Amateur Comedy Club in New York City as Lady Clara Seymour in "A Cup of Tea," (April 1886), and as Maude Ashley in "Sunshine," a one act comedy by Fred W. Broughton (December 1886). De Wolfe began her professional career in theatre, making her debut as an actress in Sardou's Thermidor in 1891, playing the rôle of Fabienne with Forbes-Robertson. In 1894 she joined the Empire Stock Company under Charles Frohman. In 1901 she brought out The Way of the World under her own management at the Victoria Theatre, and later she toured the United States with this play. On stage, she was neither a total failure nor a great success; one critic called her “the leading exponent of . . . the peculiar art of wearing good clothes well.” She became interested in interior decorating as a result of staging plays, and in 1903 she left the stage to launch a career as a decorator.

Having been described as "the first lady of interior decoration," Elsie De Wolfe was without a doubt, the first woman to have created the occupation of Interior Designer, when none had previously existed. Through her design efforts she introduced some of the most stylish and sophisticated ideas into American homes that had been seen up to that time. Elsie's presence in the design field was very apparent. She was a woman in a nearly exclusively masculine field. Many elements aided her in becoming such an influential woman designer: her social connections in society, her notable reputation as a designer and her success in designing the interior of the house she shared with her close friend, Elisabeth Marbury, all contributed to her becoming a truly significant designer.

Elsie De Wolfe, however, was not a designer all her life, as she actually began her career as an Interior Decorator at about the age of 40. Replacing the major emphasis which Victorian style represented, she chose a more vibrant scheme, along with more comfortable furniture in the home. Her design was very feminine opposed to the highly masculine design that preceded her work. Her designs were very light with fresh colors and delicate Chinoiserie furnishings, and soft, comfortably upholstered chairs, as opposed to the Victorian design of heavy, red velvet drapes and upholstery, dark wood, and intensely patterned wallpapers. In her own words, she said, “I opened the doors and windows of America, and let the air and sunshine in.” Her inspiration came from many designers and styles such as 18th century French and English furnishings. Elsie studied many aspects of the French lifestyle. Taking in the art of entertainment, food, arts, and fashion, she introduced those elements to American society. This was portrayed in her new outlook on art and fashion and also showed in her designs.

In addition to being much brighter and softer, her designs were also much more practical. She eliminated the clutter that occupied the Victorian home, enabling people to entertain more guests comfortably. She introduced a variety of things, including: the cocktail party, comfortable chaise lounges, faux finish treatments, animal prints, delicate writing tables, etc.

In 1905, Stanford White, the architect for The Colony Club and a longtime friend, helped de Wolfe secure the commission for its interior design. The building, located at 120 Madison Avenue, (near 30th Street), became the premier women's social club. It opened in 1907, and its interiors garnered her recognition almost over night. Instead of the heavy, masculine style of the day, Elsie used light fabric window coverings, painted the walls with pale colors, tiled the floors, and added wicker chairs. The effect centered on the illusion of an outdoor garden pavilion with a touch of femininity.(The building is now occupied by the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.)The success of this endeavor proved to be a turning point that launched her financially successful career.

Over the course of the next six years, Elsie designed the interiors of many prestigious homes and clubs on both the East Coast and West Coast. She also worked on opera boxes, a dormitory, and a model home. By 1913, she had developed her business enough to take up an entire floor of offices on 5th Ave., complete with assistants, secretaries, and bookkeepers. In 1915, she received a commission by Henry Clay Frick, one of the richest men in America at the time. Previously he had lived at a chateau in Pennsylvania, while making millions monopolizing the coal industry. On his retirement, he moved to New York City, where he bought a block on 5th Ave., along with the building the NY public library had occupied, for around $2.5 million. He demolished the building, and hired Thomas Hastings to build a new home for him and his family. Sir Charles Allom, known for his work remodeling Buckingham Palace, was hired to decorate a number of rooms on the first floor of the home; Elsie was hired to decorate the second floor, which included the sleeping quarters, among other rooms. Though it is not known exactly how it was that she secured the job with Frick, it is possibly due to her reputation as one the best, if not the best, decorators of the time. Earning a commission for every piece of art or furniture she purchased for Frick, Elsie became a very rich woman. She continued to design interior spaces for a long list of prestigious clients, and wrote several books and articles. During World War I, she volunteered as a nurse in France, and it was not until nearly the end of her career that, at the age of 61, she married.