Background
A Jew, she escaped the Holocaust of World World War II to the safety of the Swiss house when her father was able to obtain a Swiss schutzpass, a document that gave the bearer safe passage.
A Jew, she escaped the Holocaust of World World War II to the safety of the Swiss house when her father was able to obtain a Swiss schutzpass, a document that gave the bearer safe passage.
Student private schools, Hungary and England. Doctor of Fine Arts (honorary), International Fine Arts College, 1993. Doctor of Philosophy (honorary), Bar Ilan University, Israel, 1993.
Doctor of Philosophy (honorary), International Fine Arts College, Miami, Florida, 1993.
Peto was the first woman to join the handbag-makers guild in Budapest. This pass is on view at the Holocaust Museum in Washington District of Columbia. After working as a handbag designer for other companies, Leiber founded her own business in 1963. Sold at exclusive boutiques around the world, her handbags cost several thousand dollars and have become a status symbol for many women including several Presidential First Ladies.
Leiber is most famous for her minaudieres, which are often covered in crystals.
Animals are a recurring theme, and often the most expensive purses of the collection with prices on some animal shaped minaudieres exceeding $5000. A Judith Leiber cupcake minaudiere was featured in the Sex and the City movie.
The Judith Leiber boutiques are exclusive as there are only four in the world. They are located in India, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia.
Entitled Number Mere Bagatelles, it was written by Jeffrey Sussman.
Mr. Sussman has also written the catalogue copy for numerous exhibitions at the Leiber Museum. Exhibitions for which he has written the catalogues include one for Judith Leiber"s handbags, one for an exhibition of antique Chinese porcelains, and one for the print work of the American artist Will Barnet.
Classic examples of her work can be found in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian in Washington, District of Columbia, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, and at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
The Taubman Museum of Art in Roanoke, Virginia has had a gallery of her work on display since it opened in 2008. She retired in 1998. In September 2008, she was rated the most prestigious luxury handbag brand for the second year running by the New York-based Luxury Institute.
Member National Handbag Authority (director since 1972).
Married Gerson Leiber, February 6, 1946.