American designer and fashion icon Iris Apfel has died at the age of 102, at her home in Palm Beach.
The „geriatric starlet” was known for her cropped white hair, oversized glasses, bright lipstick and chunky beads.
Born to a Jewish family in New York in 1921, Apfel originally studied the history of art and specialised in interior design, particularly textiles.
She worked as an interior designer for decades, including on restoration projects at the White House, ad served a host of celebrity clients, including Greta Garbo and Estée Lauder.
In 2014, she was the subject of a documentary, Iris, made by acclaimed director Albert Maysles.
Her style was also the subject of a documentary film, Iris, directed by Albert Maysles, which was a hit on Netflxi when it came out.
She modelled with the biggest brands well into her 90s, and even had a Barbie doll made in her image.
Despite her high status, she stilled loved to thrift. In 2015, she told Vanity Fair that she still wore the dress she wore on the first date with her late husband, Carl Apfel, some 68 years earlier. He died in 2015, a few days short of his 101st birthday. At the time, she described him as “a very generous man, and a very funny man.”
The exhibition, “Rara Avis (Rare Bird)” was the first time the museum had paid tribute to a living woman who was not a fashion designer. It was a hit and Apfel was lauded worldwide as a style icon – for the costumes and jewellery included from her wardrobe.
In short, Iris Apfel lived a remarkable life, which she seemed to have enjoyed to its fullest.
