Voris was the professional name of Voris Marker, an American designer of
suede
Suede (pronounced ) is a type of leather with a fuzzy, napped finish, commonly used for jackets, shoes, fabrics, purses, furniture, and other items. The term comes from the French , which literally means "gloves from Sweden". The term was fir ...
sportswear
Sportswear or activewear is clothing, including footwear, worn for sport or physical exercise. Sport-specific clothing is worn for most sports and physical exercise, for practical, comfort or safety reasons.
Typical sport-specific garments ...
who won the
Neiman Marcus Fashion Award The Neiman Marcus Award for Distinguished Service in the Field of Fashion was a yearly award created in 1938 by Carrie Marcus Neiman and Stanley Marcus. Unlike the Coty Award, it was not limited to American-based fashion designers. Recipients of t ...
in 1942 for her work.
As Voris Marker, she also worked as a sculptor.
Early life and education
Born Voris Linthacum in
Baker City, Oregon
Baker City is a city in and the county seat of Baker County, Oregon, United States. It was named after Edward D. Baker, the only U.S. Senator ever killed in military combat. The population was 10,099 at the time of the 2020 census.
History
Pl ...
according to her marriage certificate,
["Montana, County Marriages, 1865-1950," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/F3W9-473 : accessed 8 March 2015), Clifford H. Marker and Voris Linthacum, 29 Nov 1936; citing Marriage, Kalispell, Flathead, Montana, county courthouses, Montana; FHL microfilm 1,902,481.] but growing up on a ranch near
Billings, Montana
Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, with a population of 117,116 as of the 2020 census. Located in the south-central portion of the state, it is the seat of Yellowstone County and the principal city of the Billings Metrop ...
, Voris worked as a
copywriter
Copywriting is the act or occupation of writing text for the purpose of advertising or other forms of marketing. The product, called copy or sales copy, is written content that aims to increase brand awareness and ultimately persuade a person or ...
for an
advertising agency
An advertising agency, often referred to as a creative agency or an ad agency, is a business dedicated to creating, planning, and handling advertising and sometimes other forms of promotion and marketing for its clients. An ad agency is generally ...
in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
after finishing school in Montana.
Career
While in Chicago, she had to have an operation on her leg, which led to her returning home as an invalid.
[ Whilst recuperating, Voris came across a piece of soft ]chamois leather
Chamois leather () is a type of porous leather, traditionally the skin of the chamois (''Rupicapra rupicapra''), a type of European mountain goat, but today made almost exclusively from the flesh split of a sheepskin.
United Kingdom
The Brit ...
, which inspired her to use it to make up clothing.[ She made a golf skirt for a Spokane woman to wear in a tournament.][ Other players and spectators noticed the skirt, and asked Voris to make them leather garments too.][ She founded her business, Suedes by Voris, in 1933, and by 1940, had shops in ]Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood, ...
(where she sold garments to many actors) and across the Southwest, selling a wide range of clothing entirely made in suede.[ Her range included day and evening wear, hats, jewelry, and men's jackets, shirts, and ties,][ made in a wide range of colors.][ One noted design was a gold-plated evening jacket.][ When the couturier ]Elsa Schiaparelli
Elsa Schiaparelli ( , also , ; 10 September 1890 – 13 November 1973) was a fashion designer from an Italian aristocratic background.
She created the house of Schiaparelli in Paris in 1927, which she managed from the 1930s to the 1950s. ...
visited Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus Group, Inc. is an American integrated luxury retailer headquartered in Dallas, Texas, which owns Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Horchow, and Last Call. Since September 2021, NMG has been owned by a group of investment compani ...
and was invited to choose any one thing she wanted from the store; she chose a Voris coat as "the most distinctive fashion she had ever seen by an American designer."[ It has been suggested that this inspired the decision to award Voris the ]Neiman Marcus Fashion Award The Neiman Marcus Award for Distinguished Service in the Field of Fashion was a yearly award created in 1938 by Carrie Marcus Neiman and Stanley Marcus. Unlike the Coty Award, it was not limited to American-based fashion designers. Recipients of t ...
in 1942.[
Voris later gave up the business to dedicate herself to ]sculpting
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
.[ Following her receipt of the Neiman Marcus award, she was commissioned to create a bronze portrait of ]Herbert Marcus
Herbert Marcus (September 6, 1878 – December 11, 1950) was one of the co-founders of Neiman Marcus, and later became its chief executive officer.
Biography
Born to a Jewish family in Kentucky, Marcus moved to Hillsboro, Texas after dropping ou ...
, the co-founder of the store.[ She made a memorial bust of ]Gary Cooper
Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...
for the Friars Club of Beverly Hills
The Friars Club of Beverly Hills (also known as the Friars Club of California) was a private show business club started in 1947 by comedian/actor Milton Berle, among other celebrities who had moved from New York. It was forced to change its name ...
in 1961.[
]
Personal life
On 29 November 1936, Voris married Clifford H. Marker (1899–1987) who went on to become a President of the Board of Water and Power Commissioners in the early 1960s.[ She died on 22 May 1973.]["California, Death Index, 1940-1997," index, FamilySearc]
Voris L Marker
accessed 8 March 2015, 22 May 1973; Department of Public Health Services, Sacramento.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Voris
1908 births
1973 deaths
American fashion designers
American women sculptors
Artists from Montana
20th-century American sculptors
People from Yellowstone County, Montana
20th-century American women artists
American women fashion designers