John Castagna, Lord & Taylor window collection
Scope and Contents
This collection holds approximately 400 photographic prints, mostly black and white, depicting the store window displays of Lord & Taylor designed by John Castagna. Various photographers and photo studios are stamped on backs of photos. Most photos show ID numbers and dates. Donor Mr. Strangi stated that artist Dennis Abby was responsible for some backdrops painting in window displays.
Dates
- Creation: circa 1960-1999
Creator
- Castagna, John (-2019) (Person)
Biographical / Historical
John Castagna was head of fashion/window display at Lord & Taylor's Manhattan, New York store for twenty-three years, retiring in 1995.
Full Extent
1 placeholder : Approximately 400 photographic prints, mostly black and white
Language of Materials
Undetermined
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
* Physical condition: Photographs are in excellent shape, and came carefully housed in clear plastic sleeves in 6 multi-ring binders. Photographs are numbered with donor's ID system. Many are dated and stamped with photographer studio on verso.
* Preservation: Pages were removed from binders, and temporarily affixed together with polypost paper binders to retain original order, and placed in boxes. Plastic sheets seem stable currently; archival quality unknown. Rehousing photographs to stable housing is recommended.
Custodial History
John Strangi inherited this collection in 2019 upon the death of John Castagna, his life partner.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
John Strangi passed the photographs to Samantha Levin on 9/17/2024 at his home in Manhattan.
General
John Castagna was head of fashion/window display at Lord & Taylor's Manhattan, New York store for twenty-three years, retiring in 1995.
General
Published
- Title
- John Castagna, Lord & Taylor window collection
- Date
- 2024-09-17
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- English Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections and FIT Archive Repository