Voris was the professional name of Voris Marker, an American designer of suede sportswear who won the Neiman Marcus Fashion Award in 1942 for her work.[2] As Voris Marker, she also worked as a sculptor.[3]

Voris Linthacum Marker
Born
Voris Linthacum

(1908-09-20)20 September 1908
Died22 May 1973(1973-05-22) (aged 64)
LabelSuedes by Voris
AwardsNeiman Marcus Fashion Award, 1942

Early life and education

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Born Voris Linthacum in Baker City, Oregon according to her marriage certificate,[1] but growing up on a ranch near Billings, Montana, Voris worked as a copywriter for an advertising agency in Chicago after finishing school in Montana.[4]

Career

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While in Chicago, she had to have an operation on her leg, which led to her returning home as an invalid.[3] Whilst recuperating, Voris came across a piece of soft chamois leather, which inspired her to use it to make up clothing.[4] She made a golf skirt for a Spokane woman to wear in a tournament.[4] Other players and spectators noticed the skirt, and asked Voris to make them leather garments too.[4] She founded her business, Suedes by Voris, in 1933, and by 1940, had shops in Hollywood (where she sold garments to many actors) and across the Southwest, selling a wide range of clothing entirely made in suede.[4] Her range included day and evening wear, hats, jewelry, and men's jackets, shirts, and ties,[4] made in a wide range of colors.[3] One noted design was a gold-plated evening jacket.[3] When the couturier Elsa Schiaparelli visited Neiman Marcus 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."[3] It has been suggested that this inspired the decision to award Voris the Neiman Marcus Fashion Award in 1942.[3]

Voris later gave up the business to dedicate herself to sculpting.[3] Following her receipt of the Neiman Marcus award, she was commissioned to create a bronze portrait of Herbert Marcus, the co-founder of the store.[3] She made a memorial bust of Gary Cooper for the Friars Club of Beverly Hills in 1961.[3][5]

Personal life

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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.[1][6] She died on 22 May 1973.[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "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.
  2. ^ McDowell, Colin (1984). McDowell's Directory of Twentieth Century Fashion. Frederick Muller. pp. 302–303. ISBN 0-584-11070-7.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Gaskill, Al (29 October 1961). "The Man in the Brown Derby". The Independent Record. Retrieved 6 March 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Staff writer (10 February 1940). "Talented Designer Visits". Arizona Independent Republic. p. 34. Retrieved 6 March 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Meyers, Jeffrey (2001). Gary Cooper: American hero (1st Cooper Square Press ed.). New York: Cooper Square Press. p. 357. ISBN 9781461660989.
  6. ^ Staff writer. "Water, power assets mark milestone". Redlands Daily Facts. UPI. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  7. ^ "California, Death Index, 1940-1997," index, FamilySearch Voris L Marker accessed 8 March 2015, 22 May 1973; Department of Public Health Services, Sacramento.