please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . learn how and when to remove these template messages this article may have too many section headers dividing up its content . please help improve the article by merging similar sections and removing unneeded subheaders . june 2013 this article contains content that is written like an advertisement . please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view . march 2013 learn how and when to remove this template message learn how and when to remove this template message kieselstein cord industry design fine art founder barry kieselstein cord headquarters new york city united states website 1 kieselstein cord kiz lsta n k rd is an international award winning luxury lifestyle brand founded by american designer artist and photographer barry kieselstein cord in 1972 in manhattan new york . products include fine jewelry sterling silver jewelry belt buckles bronze statuary leather goods including handbags eyeware home furnishings and accessories . the designer has worked with calvin klein and perry ellis 1 and has been collected by tom hanks spike lee oprah steven spielberg jay z eric clapton sir elton john sharon stone usher lenny kravitz 2 wayne gretzky giorgio armani 3 henry kravis sean penn 4 andy warhol 5 jack nicholson 6 helen frankenthaler louise nevelson karl lagerfeld sir paul smith barry diller mike myers diddy ron perelman and many more . his work is in the permanent collections of the louvre 7 metropolitan museum of art 8 louisiana state museum of fine art houston museum of fine arts national cowgirl museum and hall of fame 9 and has earned the following distinctions coty american fashion critics award council of fashion designers of america award international hollywoody radio & television society award illustrators society of new york award art directors club of new york award and the silver slipper award . 10 the brand has been featured in a variety of internationally prominent publications including architectural digest harper s bazaar 11 bolero 12 casa cigar aficionado 13 dallas times departures elle 14 forbes los angeles times 15 the times 16 the new york times 17 newsweek time 18 people 19 robb report vibe vogue french 20 italian 21 russian spanish and american 22 and wall street journal and has been featured on sex and the city 23 e law & order hard copy cnn and ny1 . the brand designation derives from the designer s original family names von kieselstein and winercord originating from austrian german ancestry . branches of the family immigrated to the u.s. from the mid 1800s to 1900 . 24 contents 1 history 1.1 early years 1.2 1971 1975 1.2.1 highlights 1.2.2 significant collections 1.3 1976 1980 1.3.1 significant collections 1.4 1981 1985 1.4.1 significant collections 1.5 1986 1990 1.5.1 significant collections 1.6 1991 1995 1.6.1 significant collections 1.7 1996 2000 1.7.1 significant collections 1.8 2001 2005 1.8.1 significant collections 1.9 2006 2010 1.9.1 significant collections 1.10 2011 present 2 references history edit early years edit after graduating parsons school of design in combination with a program at new york university kieselstein cord entered the field of advertising 25 where he won several awards including the illustrators society award new york the international hollywood radio & television society award and multiple art directors club of new york awards . in 1972 he founded kieselstein cord with the mission to create a totally vertical american luxury company from basic concept to retail platform based on the historic precedence of french ateliers under king louis xiv and not dissimilar to the concept of louis comfort tiffany s earliest establishment . however kieselstein cord built his firm with a unique contemporary vision . 1971 1975 edit in 1971 kieselstein cord begun experimenting with sterling however the bulk of his early work was produced with plastic remnants leftover from the 1930s and 1940s . by late 1971 he had progressed to sterling and natural materials such as seasonally discarded deer horns and leather trimmings . his first significant sale was to bob m lee a big game hunter and then owner of the hunting world stores . the resulting profits from that sale allowed kieselstein cord the facility to purchase his first large scale amount of sterling silver . based on the accumulation of that material he produced his first full sterling collection in 1972 . the collection was presented to george jensen s general merchandise manager charles dishman . dishman referred cord to remica russell the fine jewelry buyer for george jensen . russell agreed to buy the collection and represent kieselstein cord at jensen s u.s. flagship store on madison avenue in new york city . 26 the debut of kieselstein cord at jensen was an immediate success and led to the start of an international following . among the many fans kieselstein cord started to develop was the famous spanish bullfighter el cordob s who bought the designer s large horse head buckle diane keaton cat stevens liz smith and others . 27 1972 to 75 were pertinent growing years for the brand . increasing publicity and groundbreaking design direction afforded kieselstein cord extensive coverage in the national press . at this juncture kieselstein cord started touring the country to expand his business . he established the brand in secondary cities across the united states i.e. oklahoma city ok cleveland oh louisville ky etc. . his primary goal was large scale distribution of exquisite handmade luxury products through america s leading specialty retailers at that time i.e. saks fifth avenue henri bendel and bonwit teller among others . among these retailers was lou lattimore in dallas tx where kieselstein cord s products captured the eye of the then women s fashion buyer cece eddy later to become kieselstein cord s wife and lifestyle brand model now divorced and known today as cece cord . during this period of growth kieselstein cord began to expand his employee base bringing in young talented international craftspeople and imbuing them with his mission and dedication to his artistic design vision . highlights edit in 1972 valentino fashion director eve orton introduced kieselstein cord to calvin klein . in 1973 klein won his first coty award showcasing kieselstein cord s designs on his models . klein continued to showcase kieselstein cord s designs with his work up through winning his second coty award in 1974 . by 1979 kieselstein cord now a recognized american luxury brand won his first coty award . in 1973 kieselstein cord created a seminal piece for mick jagger s 30th birthday a sterling silver skull necklace . significant collections edit chicklet pendants 1973 king tut & falcon 1973 astro man 1973 74 wonder woman cuffs 1974 75 1976 1980 edit 1976 was a turning point for kieselstein cord . the designer introduced one of the most important divisions of his company status belt buckles . this virtually changed the landscape and appreciation of luxury goods in the world . although the price points were considered high for the time 275 for a sterling silver buckle on an alligator strap they were an aesthetic breakthrough and an incomparable value by future standards . the collection allowed keiselstein cord to enter a broader market . andre leon talley of women s wear daily was the first to cover the collection and later interviewed kieselstein cord in interview magazine . 28 talley s story caught the eye of jade hobson at vogue . 29 within six months of its introduction kieselstein cord s now famous seminal winchester buckle appeared on fourteen consecutive pages of vogue photographed by helmut newton . this catapulted the already rising kieselstein cord to stardom which allowed his work to reach a larger sophisticated and fashionable audience eager to embrace new symbols of status and success . the increasing sales of the buckles and popularity of the designs facilitated an economic boom for the company in an generally recessionary period . this resulted in an expansion of kieselstein cord s production and design capabilities . despite the fact that ever increasing commodity prices were shrinking the general consumer s appetite for precious metals products the artist designer continued to expand in the face of high demand for his work . the latter half of the 70s saw a continuous stream of innovation and production as kieselstein cord gained financial independence and momentum . it allowed for greater variety and experimentation of design and form . the lavish use of gold and precious and semi precious stones made it debut . the success of these collections paved the way for the famous pompeii and borgia collections later to come . concurrent with this was positive media coverage and a growing audience for the artist designer s creations . kieselstein cord s business began to develop a substantial international following . this period also ushered in a collaboration with designer perry ellis . kieselstein cord designs began to appear in ellis runway shows . further ellis allowed kieselstein cord to showcase his work post shows in the perry ellis showroom . as a thank you kieselstein cord designed and produced a unique set of sterling silver baby duck candlesticks to run the length of ellis dining room table . the association served as a spring board to prominence for the brand and continued for many years . english writer jonathan moore profiled this on his posthumous book about perry ellis . during the course of working with ellis kieselstein cord had the first opportunity to work with isaac mizrahi . significant collections edit victorian doll face 1977 borgia 1980 1981 1985 edit significant collections edit caviar 1981 intaglio column 1984 85 1986 1990 edit significant collections edit pompeii 1986 crown heart 1987 alligator 1988 89 1991 1995 edit kieselstein cord introduced its first handbag collections in 1991 . 30 this included the iconic alligator trophy bag which is in the collections of the met and the louvre . significant collections edit women of the world 1993 1996 2000 edit kieselstein cord introduced its first eyewear collections in 1997 . 31 significant collections edit windows art steel and gold 2000 2001 2005 edit significant collections edit midnight summer s dream vero 2004 crocodile hall 2005 kieselstein cord premier diamond collections 2004 06 2006 2010 edit significant collections edit vienna back to eden freedom garden goddess the four elements 2006 2011 present edit in late 2010 after thirty eight consecutive years barry kieselstein cord placed his company on a limited period of hiatus . in late 2012 he reemerged to enter a new period of activity marked by the successful publication of his first book awarded the first step in the company s return to full time active business . during the artist s absence designated employees have continued to support the brand . references edit when the show goes on . vogue 294 . february 1984 . sheikh sheba 24 august 2012 . tfg exclusive case brief . the fashion grid . retrieved 8 march 2013 . wolfson nancy march april 1999 . smoking in style . cigar aficionado . retrieved 8 march 2013 . awarded photographs by barry kieselstein cord . 27 september 2012 . retrieved 8 march 2013 . strugatz rachel 15 october 2012 . barry kieselstein cord retrospective bows in n.y. . women s wear daily . kieselstein cord . marion heinrich . retrieved 8 march 2013 . avenue . january 1999 . missing or empty title help search the collections barry kieselstein cord . the metropolitan museum of art . retrieved 9 march 2013 . gould bob . barry kieselstein cord art featured at the national girl museum and hall of fame . ebarrelracing.com . retrieved 21 march 2013 . kieselstein cord barry 2012 . awarded . hudson house publishing . isbn 978 1 58776 938 2 . dynamic designer duo 1976 . harper s bazaar 86