"Busy Bye Ways Echo" Fabric Swatch Designed by Ruth Adler Schnee, 1947-1951

01

Artifact Overview

Trained as an interior architect, Ruth Adler Schnee began her pioneering foray into textile design with an entry into the Chicago Tribune's "Better Rooms for Better Living" interior design competition. Unable to locate suitable fabrics, she designed her own and this ad hoc textile she designed drew attention. She promptly taught herself to screen print and began to sell her own designs.

Artifact Details

Artifact

Swatch

Date Made

1947-1951

Location

Not on exhibit to the public.

Object ID

2018.143.30

Credit

From the Collections of The Henry Ford.

Material

Polyester (Fiber)

Color

Purple
Pink (Color)
Cream (Color)

Dimensions

Height: 52.5 in
Width: 35.25 in

Inscriptions

on side of fabric: H[sic] ADLER DESIGN" FOR ADLER SCHNEE ASSOCIATES "BUSY BYWAYS" on front of paper tag: asa / ADLER-SCHNEE ASSOCIATES / CONTEMPORARY HAND PRINTED TEXTILES / RUTH ADLER DESIGNS [...] / FABRIC Natural Sheerlin / DESIGN "BUSY BYE WAYS ECHO" / COLOR Custom / REPEAT 34" / WIDTH 38" / STOCK / PRICE on back of paper tag: WHEN ORDERING...specify background fabric, design, placement of colors in design and include color samples with order. Be sure sufficient yardage is ordered as an exact match on reorders cannot be guaranteed. 10 yard minimum on all Custom orders. / Original tag 1951 / SCHNEE & SCHNEE INC. / [...]
02

Related Content

  • "Pins and Needles" Fabric Swatch Designed by Ruth Adler Schnee, 1949-1964
    Set

    Ruth Adler Schnee's Textiles

    • 38 Artifacts
    Pioneering modern designer Ruth Adler Schnee’s bold textiles have broad appeal. Her furnishing and drapery fabrics were favorites of the everyday consumer and leading architects alike, including Minoru Yamasaki, Paul Rudolph, and Buckminster Fuller. Adler Schnee’s textiles, which feature vivid color and abstracted organic forms, added whimsy and depth to the sleek, minimal aesthetic popular in the mid-century period.