Money came easy to American art collector, Marguerite “Peggy” Guggenheim; along with an eye for art and access to elite fashion statements. Anyone who knows of her describes her as a “socialite”, a characteristic an artist needs to break into the industry.
A built-in legacy is never a curse. However, her very own father, Benjamin Guggenheim, passed due to the traumatic sinking of the Titanic. Born in Philadelphia, the businessman made a name for himself with the assistance of his futuristic entrepreneurial skills and inheritance from his father.
Peggy’s father lacked a solidified bond with his wife, so he occupied his own space in Paris, France away from New York City (the family home). And with the France inspiration embedded in the art savvy daughter, Peggy includes a range of works that highlight America and France artistic values.
Self-diagnosed, the “art-addict”, predicted the future back in 1938 through her long-term lifetime. Cubism, Futurism, Surrealism, European Abstraction, and early American Abstract Expressionism; the Director of her “Peggy Guggenheim Collection” predicted the sign of the times, and that is what sets her apart from the very success established pre-conceivement of the prospective influencer.
We talked about her abilities with physical artwork in depth, but it is time to discuss her highly mentioned sense of style: eclectic.
Her decisions in the closet matched just that of her decision with art, for she wanted every inch of her life to be different. She was just different, but so is everyone. Maybe she just knew what the world needed more of at her time, or maybe she just liked what she liked and it worked wonders for her historic mark in both the United States and Europe.
If Guggenheim made an appearance in jeans, we would be worried. The mogul stepped out in oversized sunglasses, and when we say oversized, we mean about triple the normal proportion. But, she made each outlandish decision work to her full advantage. Capturing the attention of all who laid eyes on the confident fashionista, she had an immense amount of expectations on her; nonetheless, she always exceeded the imagination. Peggy struck her magic amongst designers and even street style.
Edward Melcarth was a dream designer for the art fanatic to collaborate with. Eventually, the painter demonstrated his hidden talent- curating sunglasses, but not any kind, the bat-wing and butterfly pair of iconic sunglasses.
Additional designers that bent towards Guggenheim’s style were Fortuny and Ken Scott, a textile designer.
Generation-Z cannot miss the path Guggenheim carved out for the sector of humans and their lifetime. She evolved the times of art and fashion more than she probably could comprehend herself. The wonders of the world inspired her and led her to compiling one of the world’s most visited and desirable art collection galleries in Venice, Italy. Not surprisingly, the venue is one of the most visited attractions in that specific geographic location.