Items from Fashion World and Style Icon Iris Apfel will be Auctioned Oct 15-17 by Millea Bros Ltd

A special three-day, single-owner auction celebrating the life and legacy of Iris Apfel (1921-2024) – the style icon, tastemaker, and fashion-world firecracker – will be held October 15th, 16th and 17th, by Millea Bros. Ltd., online and live in the Millea Bros. Ltd. gallery, located at 607 Myrtle Avenue in Boonton, beginning at 10am Eastern Time each day.

As the final trove from her personal collection, the sale includes the remaining contents of her two New York City apartments, her Palm Beach residence, and several personal storage units. Ms. Apfel’s legacy comes vividly to life in this concluding chapter of her remarkable collection. Items reflect her signature “more-is-more” aesthetic – bold, eclectic and joyful.

On offer is a dazzling mix of vintage and contemporary fashion, costume jewelry, couture, and accessories, alongside an eclectic array of furnishings, artwork, and decorative objects. In all, a total of 1,173 lots will cross the auction block. Notably, most items carry modest pre-sale estimates, making the sale accessible to a wide audience, just as Iris would have wanted.

The auction is titled, Apfelicious! / The Iris Apfel Sale. “This auction is a final invitation into Iris’s world -- the bold color, the risk-taking, and the unapologetic joy she brought to every space and garment,” said Mark Millea of Millea Bros. Ltd. “Even in absence, her personality lives on through these objects, and we’re honored to share that legacy with collectors both new and old.”

Highlights include Chinese textiles, many of them exhibited at the Newark Museum’s Dragon Threads in 1992; fashion pieces that were famously exhibited in Rara Avis: Selections from the Iris Barrel Apfel Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2005–06; French and Continental furniture and decorative arts; and Venetian hand-painted furniture and porcelains.

Day 1 (Oct. 15) items will include a vintage Northwest Coast button blanket, likely Haida or Tlingit, British Columbia, 4 feet 6 inches by 4 feet 9 inches; a 19th century William Edwards Australian silver mounted emu egg, converted to a hinged presentation box; and a Continental polychrome enameled porcelain model of a monkey, 14 inches tall, shown seated, eating fruit.

Also offered on Day 1 is an antique Venetian painted bombe commode with a later faux painted marble top over a green painted and floral decorated case; a rare, late 19th century French Palais Royal sedan chair and scent holder; and an oil on canvas portrait of Anne (Lovet), Countess of Bath, done by a follower of Anthony van Dyck (Flemish, 1599-1641).

Day 1 key fashion lots will include the following:

- A group of vintage floral evening ensembles dating to the 1960s and 1970s.

- A Mongolian lamb jacket by Dries Van Noes, with a Papua New Guinea long pendant of white cowrie Oceanic shells, and a pair of Exte abstract print leather pants, size 42.

- An Emilio Pucci bright orange velvet combo piece that can be carried as a tote or fold over style, with leather handle and fastener trim in camel.

- A suede and Mongolian curly lamb coat, made in France, 40 inches in length.

- A 20th century Miao Mong Peoples metal alloy necklace, 11 inches in diameter.

Day 2 (Oct. 16) will feature a Continental School portrait painting of an aristocrat hunter and his dog (possibly Italian, 18th century); an oil on Masonite painting by Alberoi Bazile (Haitian, 1920-2005), titled Tree of Life, signed and unframed; and a 1965 UPI silver gelatin print fashion photograph titled Irene Simonaitis Models Furrier Rosin & Starr Glasses, matted and framed.

Also up for bid that day will be a sterling silver George II silver hot water kettle on a stand with the maker’s mark of Christian Hillan and a letter dated for 1740; a massive 20th century Navajo silver metal belt buckle with a central longhorn design with turquoise and coral; and a pair of Louis Philippe blue opaline glass sinumbra lamps with gilt decoration floral etched glass shades.

Further Day 2 offerings include an 18th century Chinese Qing Dynasty gilt bronze chocolate pot with decorated scenic relief panels, 10 ½ inches tall; a 19th century chinoiserie floor screen after Jean-Baptiste Pillement, each hand-painted 77-inch by 23-inch canvas panel depicting a fantasy landscape; and a pair of Venetian silvered wood Grotto armchairs in the manner of Pauly & Cie.

Key fashion lots on Day 2 will feature the following:

- A selection of 21st century floral necklaces by artist Mercedes Castro Corbat, all from the same project and being sold as one lot.

- A mid-20th century Navajo turquoise and silver squash blossom necklace, unmarked, 24 ½ inches long.

- A 2001 Proenza Schouler macrame fringe skirt in yellow, black, gray yarn in a tribal design, paired with an Adrienne Landau goat fur jacket.

- A 1980s James Galanos Costume Institute evening dress of brown silk, with rhinestone and gold embroidery and trim, fully lined.

Day 3 (Oct. 17) will showcase a vector illustration on aluminum portrait of the lady herself, Iris Apfel, by Analy Diego, signed in plate lower left; an aluminum sculpture by Donald Sultan (American, b. 1951), titled Black Button Flower, a Saint Louis Fashion Fund Award presented to Ms. Apfel, 2015; and a Chinese Qing Dynasty headdress with pierced kingfisher feather motifs.

Also up for bid will be a nice pair of 19th century Palais Royal gilt metal and glass ewers having blue marbled glass bodies with elaborate gilt brass mounts; an 18th or 19th century Venetian rococo paint decorated harpsichord with deep red lacquered case, unmarked; and an oil on panel Portrait of Young Girl with book, from the Circle of Jacob Gerritsz Cuyp (Dutch, 1594-1652).

Additional Day 3 offerings include a circa 1960s Paco Rabanne cherry red leather circle handbag, in France with chain mail trim; a Continental Neoclassical ebonized “Dolphin” gueridon, made in Italy or Germany in the 19th century; a mid-19th century Meissen porcelain caparisoned elephant carrying a seated sultan, 13 ½ inches tall; and a first half 20th century Chinese embroidered silk robe with bold floral, wave and figural panels in gold metal thread.

Day 3 key fashion lots will showcase the following:

- A group of Iris Apfel eyeglass frames, including glasses from her personal use collection, as well as her retail line.

- A pair of 20th century hand-knit dresses, with two Apfel handbags (one from the PEM museum collection) and a pair of Nike Lacrosse Speedlax sneakers, size 10, never used.

- A Stephen Yearick dip dye orange feather and silk taffeta coat, size 12, paired with a pair of James Purcell high-waisted raw silk orange dot pleat pants with zippered back, size 10.

- A 2007 Prada knee-length fringed and feather coat with black feather cuffs and zipper front closure.

- A circa 2017 Vialiwan goldtone metal and rhinestone starburst parure, comprising a necklace and two bracelets of yellow metal, each set with rhinestone.

- A circa 1990s Fernando Sanchez silk taffeta evening coat in vibrant pink, oversize, with multi-tone pink yellow sleeves, 56 inches long, plus a pair of Iris x Zenni glasses. 

Iris Apfel was born Iris Barrel on August 29, 1921. She was an American businesswoman, interior designer, and fashion designer, known for her flamboyant style, outspoken personality and oversized eyeglasses. In business with her husband, Carl Apfel, from 1950-1992, Iris had a career in textiles, including a contract with the White House that spanned nine presidencies.

In retirement, she drew acclaim for a 2005 show at the Costume Institute at The Metropolitan Museum of Art featuring her collection of costume jewelry and styled with clothes on mannequins as she would wear them. She became a fashion icon, was the focus of the 2014 Albert Maysles documentary Iris, then signed to IMG in 2019 as a model at age 97.

Internet bidding will be provided by the Millea Bros. Ltd. website (www.MilleaBros.com) as well as LiveAuctioneers.com, Invaluable.com and Bidsquare.com. The format is hybrid, with live gallery + online with livestream video + phone bidding. Absentee bids will also be accepted.

In-gallery previews will be held on Monday, October 14, from 11am-7pm; Tuesday, October 15, from 11am-5pm; Wednesday, October 16, from 9am-5pm; Thursday, October 17, from 9am-5pm; and Friday, October 18, from 9am-10am. All times are Eastern. No appointment needed.

For more info about Millea Bros. Ltd. and the Apfelicious! / The Iris Apfel Sale planned for October 15th thru 17th, online and live in Boonton, N.J., please visit www.MilleaBros.com.

About Millea Bros. Ltd.:
Millea Bros. Ltd. is always seeking quality consignments for future auctions. To consign a single item, an estate or an entire collection, you can call them at (973) 377-1500; or, you can send an e-mail to info@milleabros.com. All phone calls and e-mails are held in strictest confidence. For more info about Millea Bros. Ltd., please visit www.MilleaBros.com. Updates are posted frequently.

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