Calvin Klein sketches
Scope and Contents
Sketches (watercolor with swatches) of womenswear, signed jointly by Klein and Edward W. Kerson.
Dates
- Creation: 1987
Creator
- Klein, Calvin, 1942- (1942-) (Person)
- Kerson, Edward W. (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Access is open to researchers by appointment at the Fashion Institute of Technology Library, Department of Special Collections and FIT Archive. If you have any questions, or wish to schedule an appointment contact us at [email protected] or call (212) 217-4385.
Conditions Governing Use
The Department of Special Collections and FIT Archive does not own copyright for all material held in its physical custody. It is the researcher's obligation to abide by and satisfy copyright law (http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#108) when copying or using materials (including digital materials) found in or made available from the department. When possible, the department will inform a researcher about the copyright status of material, the researcher's obligations with regard to such material, and, wherever possible, the owner or owners of the copyrights. Any and all reproduction of originals is at the archivist's discretion.
Biographical / Historical
Calvin Richard Klein was born on November 19, 1942, in the Bronx, New York to Jewish-Hungarian immigrants. He first attended the High School of Industrial Art, then studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. Upon graduating in 1962 at age 20, he began apprenticing for a coat and suit manufacturer on Seventh Avenue. Six years later, he opened his own company (with the help of Barry Schwartz, a childhood friend), designing simple, minimalist garments which contrasted with the flower-power aesthetic of the period. Klein was in charge of all things creative while Schwartz ran the business side of the company. Klein's early designs were primarily suit and coat styles, but he gradually expanded into women's sportswear. Bonwit Teller was an early supporter of Klein, selling the designer's goods in their department stores. By the early 1970s, Klein was selling millions of dollars worth of products. Klein was awarded three consecutive Coty Awards from 1973 to 1975. By entering the denim market in the mid 1970s and later licensing his name to other products, Klein was able to gain a large following. The advertisements for Calvin Klein products became infamous in the 1990s; attractive, young models wearing Klein's clothes and posing "provocatively" made Klein a household name. Klein sold his company in 2003 to Phillips–Van Heusen for an estimated $430 million. Klein published a memoir in 2017 discussing his career.
Full Extent
1 placeholder
Language of Materials
Undetermined
Existence and Location of Originals
The Library of the Fashion Institute of Technology, Department of Special Collections and FIT Archive, 27th St. at 7th Ave., NY, NY , USA, 10001
General
Calvin Richard Klein was born on November 19, 1942, in the Bronx, New York to Jewish-Hungarian immigrants. He first attended the High School of Industrial Art, then studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. Upon graduating in 1962 at age 20, he began apprenticing for a coat and suit manufacturer on Seventh Avenue. Six years later, he opened his own company (with the help of Barry Schwartz, a childhood friend), designing simple, minimalist garments which contrasted with the flower-power aesthetic of the period. Klein was in charge of all things creative while Schwartz ran the business side of the company. Klein's early designs were primarily suit and coat styles, but he gradually expanded into women's sportswear. Bonwit Teller was an early supporter of Klein, selling the designer's goods in their department stores. By the early 1970s, Klein was selling millions of dollars worth of products. Klein was awarded three consecutive Coty Awards from 1973 to 1975. By entering the denim market in the mid 1970s and later licensing his name to other products, Klein was able to gain a large following. The advertisements for Calvin Klein products became infamous in the 1990s; attractive, young models wearing Klein's clothes and posing "provocatively" made Klein a household name. Klein sold his company in 2003 to Phillips–Van Heusen for an estimated $430 million. Klein published a memoir in 2017 discussing his career.
General
Published
General
Minimal
General
Shell record
- Title
- Calvin Klein sketches
- Date
- 2025-06-02
- Description rules
- Dacs; Isad(g); Lo C
- 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