Iris Apfel was an interior designer who, late in life, became an icon of maximalist, boho style.
- Died: March 1, 2024 (Who else died on March 1?)
- Details of death: Died at her home in Palm Beach, Florida, at the age of 102.
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Iris Apfel’s legacy
After writing for Women’s Wear Daily as a young woman, Apfel began dabbling in interior design. She began her design career in earnest after founding the textile firm Old World Weavers in 1950 with her husband, Carl Apfel (1914–2015). The two created rich fabrics based on designs from centuries past, and their work found a thriving market that included the White House. Apfel worked to restore or replicate classic textiles in the White House for nine presidents, from Harry S. Truman (1884–1972) to Bill Clinton.
While she worked in textile design, Apfel cultivated her own unique personal style, built around brightly colored pieces from all over the world and featuring countless accessories. An outfit might include several scarves, bangles halfway up each arm, a chunky necklace or three, and Apfel’s signature glasses. Bold, big, and round, the glasses made her instantly recognizable and remained an anchor of her style throughout her years of fame.
Apfel’s personal style came to the attention of the broader public after selections from her wardrobe were featured in a 2005 exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Titled “Rara Avis: Selections from the Iris Apfel Collection,” the show was a first in the Met’s history, and it attracted widespread attention.
As the Met show was attended by fashion world higher-ups and the public alike, Apfel found herself receiving requests to be photographed for magazines, to represent products in ads, and to collaborate on design collections. She became a visiting professor at the University of Texas, inspired a fashion line from H&M, and, in 2018, became the oldest woman ever to have a Barbie doll created in her likeness. Though the Iris Apfel Barbie was never mass produced, two dolls were released as “Styled by Iris Apfel.”
In the wake of the attention, Apfel called herself a “geriatric starlet.” In 2014, she was the subject of the documentary “Iris.” She was also featured in the 2017 documentary “If You’re Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast” alongside other celebrities in their 90s. Apfel’s autobiography, “Iris Apfel: Accidental Icon,” was published in 2018.
Apfel on her earliest style role model:
“I suppose it was my mother, who was extremely chic. I always say she worshiped at the altar of the accessory. She knew what to do with bits and pieces, and I never saw anybody so clever with a scarf.” —from a 2021 interview for Vogue
Tributes to Iris Apfel
Full obituary: The New York Times
