Erte biography arthur
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Erte
Erte, born långnovell de Tirtoff, was born into an ancient family of Russian military aristocracy in 1892. He spent his first 19 years in imperial St Petersburg which overflowed at the time with theatre, ballet and art. He designed a dress for his mother to wear as a ball gown at the tender age of 6. In 1906 he began studying with portraitist Ilya Repin.
He arrived in Paris in 1912 to study with historical painter Jean-Paul Laurens at Academie Julian. He hated the regimen of study and quit within months. A dressmaker Caroline who thought he had no talent for formgivning hired him. After a month he submitted sketches to Pioret, the eccentric doyen of French couturiers. His first assignment was to design costumes for the notorious Mata Hari. In Paris he got his pen name, which is merely the French pronunciation of his initials R.T.
Piorot closed in 1914 because of the war. Erte designed for Henry Bendel and Altman’s in New York. In 1915 he submitted sketches to Harper’s B
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The Art and Legacy of Erté
If there were any single artist who encapsulated the extravagance, luxury, and brilliance of the Art Deco era, it would be Erté.
An accomplished artist, costume designer, and graphic designer, the work of Erté is famous worldwide not only as physical art, but in the form of jewelry as well.
The clean lines and sharp colorblocking of this sterling silver, gold, mother-of-pearl and onyx cuff bracelet designed by Erté is a true testament to the hallmarks of Erté’s most famous work.
Read on to learn more about Erté and his journey to capture the spirit of the Art Deco period.
Erté, born Roman Tyrtov in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1892, began creating sculptures at 15 years old. After moving to Paris in 1910, he assumed a pseudonym, Erté, to avoid association with his family in Russia.
After working for designer Paul Poiret, Erté began designing covers for Harper’s Bazaar. His covers for Harper’s Bazaar are some of his most famous work.
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Erté the Father of Art Deco
Romain de Tirtoff was born in Saint Petersburg on November 23rd, 1892 and he died in Paris on the April 21st, 1990. He called himself Erté after the French pronunciation (air-tay) of his two initials.
In 1915 he managed to get a contract with Harper’s Bazaar magazine, and thus he launched himself into a legendary career that included fashion and jewelry and also designing costumes and stage sets for the Theatre and Films. Including costume and set designs for Hollywood Movies and also stage productions including some spectacular scenes in the “Ziegfeld Follies” of 1923 in New York, many production numbers in numerous “Follies Bergere” in Paris and also for the Paris Opera.
In the 1920’s he went to Hollywood where he designed the original costumes for both the silent version and later the 1959 version of “Ben Hur”.
Erté designed over 250 covers for Harper’s Bazaar, limitless drawings for the inside pages, his illustrations also