Hindman – Clothing Archive Of Geoffrey Beene (1927- 2004)

Hindman will sell Property From The Geoffrey Beene Archive: Clothes That Care, featuring significant designs from iconic fashion designer Geoffrey Beene’s personal collection that have been carefully preserved for the past 15 years.

The auction in Chicago on November 20th includes lots dating from the 1960’s to the early 2000’s. All net proceeds from the sale of the Geoffrey Beene Archive will benefit the Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Center at Memorial Sloan Kettering.

Tom Ford and Marc Jacobs asked separately who they felt was the greatest designer produced by the United States in the 20th century, a figure who could be placed alongside couturiers of the calibre of Chanel and Balenciaga, both replied without hesitation, “Geoffrey Beene,” according to fashion writer Colin McDowell who interviewed them for The Business of Fashion.

Beene did not care to be a big brand. In his gentlemanly Southern drawl he said: “I’m not a driven businessman, but a driven artist, I never think about money – beautiful things make money”.

“At Hindman, we love any opportunity to celebrate exemplary designs, and this sale is replete with highlights of modern American fashion design,” said Timothy Long, Hindman’s director and senior specialist of luxury accessories and couture. “We are proud that the proceeds of the Property From The Geoffrey Beene Archive: Clothes That Care© sale will benefit cancer research.”

Geoffrey Beene was one of the greatest American fashion designers of the 20th century and a prominent figure in the emergence of the American fashion industry after World War II. Beene was a pioneering force in creating an American style that was independent from the dictates of European Haute Couture. From the launch of his own line in 1963 to his death in 2004, Geoffrey Beene was an independent force in American fashion, and was awarded the prestigious Coty Fashion Award no less than eight times­—the highest number awarded to any designer to date.

Beene started his career during the era when Parisian designers still dominated the fashion world and Americans were expected to look to them for inspiration. However, though Beene was trained in the traditional manner, educated in New York and Paris, he broke out of the mould after his training and apprenticeship working for other designers. His first collection made the cover of Vogue, and he has been regarded as a Dean of American design ever since. His high-profile clients have included several Presidential First Ladies, and he designed the wedding dress of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s daughter, Lynda Bird Johnson, in 1967.

The Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Centre at Memorial Sloan Kettering was created in 2006 to support and fund new research approaches in preventing, diagnosing and treating all cancers. Together, the Geoffrey Beene Foundation and Geoffrey Beene, LLC have awarded a total of over $175 million to the Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Center, funding approximately 130 separate new revolutionary research projects that have resulted in major breakthroughs in multiple cancers.

About The Geoffrey Beene Foundation

The Geoffrey Beene Foundation was founded in 2006 by G. Thompson (“Tom”) Hutton, Esq., under his discretionary authority as Executor of the Estate of Geoffrey Beene, who died in 2004. The mission of the Foundation is to support critical philanthropic causes, the most important being the establishment in 2006 of the Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Center at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Tom Hutton initiated and orchestrated the creation of the Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Center with Harold Varmus, M.D. (Nobel Laureate and former CEO of MSK), because Hutton wanted to fund new revolutionary research initiatives that would lead to new treatments for cancer patients. Together the Geoffrey Beene Foundation and Geoffrey Beene, LLC (until 2018 when its business was sold) have been the sole funding sources and have funded approximately 130 separate new revolutionary research initiatives across all cancers to develop new treatments and diagnostics for cancer patients. The new research has resulted in major breakthroughs in multiple cancers, saving and improving thousands of lives.

About the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center is the world’s oldest and largest private cancer center and has devoted more than 130 years to exceptional patient care, innovative research, and outstanding educational programs. Today, they are one of 50 National Cancer Institute–designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers, with state-of-the-art science flourishing side by side with clinical studies and treatment.

The close collaboration between physicians and scientists is one of Memorial Sloan Kettering’s unique strengths, enabling them to provide patients with the best care available, as they work to discover more effective strategies to prevent, control, and ultimately cure cancer in the future. Their education programs train future physicians and scientists, and the knowledge and experience they gain at Memorial Sloan Kettering has an impact on cancer treatment and biomedical research around the world.

For more information about the auction please contact visit Hindman.