Dorothy Liebes | 8. Boss Lady

When the organizers of the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition offered Dorothy the directorship of the Decorative Arts Pavilion, Leon advised that she not take on this enormous task. He was concerned about the toll it would take on her health. He also wanted her to move home from the Fairmont. Dorothy opted instead to step into the spotlight on Treasure Island.

She traversed the United States and Europe in the summer of 1938, collecting textiles, books, metalworks, sculpture, jewelry, furniture, and more, with a single unifying characteristic: modernism. The design of the pavilions, the exhibit catalog, the live demonstrations of artists in action, and the emphasis on indoor/outdoor living were Liebes’s vision realized. She was lauded by critics including Alfred Auerbach, who wrote, “The entire presentation reveals a discerning, keen understanding of who’s who and what’s what in modern art at the moment.”

Receiving shipments of decorative arts

Liebes reflected on her experience, saying, “I cannot over-emphasize the importance of the Exposition in my work. It taught me so much, and brought me into the orbit of so many artists, collectors and patrons of art, that I at last felt I was firmly established. My name became known in Europe and the Exposition called wider attention in America to my work. It was a turning point in my career.”