Vintage Mid Century Modern ALFRED SHAHEEN Signed Cotton Panel, Rare ASIAN Motif
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:181700 | Handmade: No |
| Country/Region of Manufacture: United States | Modified Item: No |
| Brand: Alfred Shaheen |
Alfred Shaheen is best known for his Hawaiian shirts and dresses. He has been credited with the popularization of the Hawaiian shirt. A brief biographical note found in Wikipedia has been copied and pasted at the end of this description for those interested in known more about him.
The panel for sale here is one of several designs he produced to be used as textile art for home wall decoration. This Chinese or Asian motif piece seems to be one of the rare prints by Shaheen, as we hav...e not seen it before and haven't found it (yet, we keep trying) when we started searching for it on the web.
The design is from the 1960's, we believe, and it is influenced by the Mid Century Modernism movement and other textile designers of those years.
It measures 46" by 26" across.
Shaheen was an aeronautics engineer and later a fighter pilot with the US Army Air Force, and flew 84 missions over Germany, France and Italy.
Elvis Presley wears one of his shirts in the album cover of "Blue Hawaii".
From Wikipedia:
Shaheen was born in Cranford, New Jersey, on January 31, 1922, to a family of Lebanese immigrants, who were garment industry entrepreneurs. Shaheen's grandfather, Assi Shaheen, came to the U.S. from Lebanon in the late-1800s and established silk factories in New York and New Jersey. Shaheen's father, George, joined his father, Assi, in the U.S. in the early-1900s. George ultimately started his own business, Geo. Shaheen, with his wife, Mary. In 1938, George moved his family and his business to Hawaii, where George and Mary specialized in custom garments made from silks, brocades, rayon satin, and other formal fabrics. Alfred returned to the mainland to attend Whittier College, where he excelled at math, physics, engineering and football. After graduating with a degree in aeronautical engineering just as the U.S. entered World War II, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps and became a fighter pilot, flying 84 missions over Germany, Italy and France.[5][6][7]Surf 'n Sand Hand Prints[edit]In 1945, when Shaheen returned to Hawaii from the war, he joined his parents in their custom garment business. In 1948, Shaheen founded his own garment company. In the late 1940s, a dock strike and the Korean War severely curtailed importation of goods to Hawaii, so Shaheen made his own equipment from parts he found in Honolulu's junkyards to dye and finish fabrics under the brand name Surf 'n Sand Hand Prints.[7][8][9]Shaheen distributed his clothing all over the world. He believed in celebrating cultural diversity, and his artists adapted designs from authentic sources such as rare books and ancient artifacts. Shaheen and his staff visited Tahiti, Samoa, Hong Kong and Tokyo to study the designs of the Eastern Pacific Rim. Shaheen adapted these designs to textiles and produced the Pua Lani Pareau, Antique Tapa, and Joss Sticks handprints. Shaheen established “East Meets West” boutiques in the mid-1960s in major department stores across the country.Shaheen's designs were featured in the pages of fashion magazines such as Vogue, Mademoiselle, and Harper's Bazaar. His clothes and fabrics were sold all over the world, including Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdale's, Macy's and Bullock's.[10]In the 1960s, the company diversified, adding footwear, drapery, jewelry, fragrance, and pattern kits complete with fabric and coconut buttons.[10
The panel for sale here is one of several designs he produced to be used as textile art for home wall decoration. This Chinese or Asian motif piece seems to be one of the rare prints by Shaheen, as we hav...e not seen it before and haven't found it (yet, we keep trying) when we started searching for it on the web.
The design is from the 1960's, we believe, and it is influenced by the Mid Century Modernism movement and other textile designers of those years.
It measures 46" by 26" across.
Shaheen was an aeronautics engineer and later a fighter pilot with the US Army Air Force, and flew 84 missions over Germany, France and Italy.
Elvis Presley wears one of his shirts in the album cover of "Blue Hawaii".
From Wikipedia:
Shaheen was born in Cranford, New Jersey, on January 31, 1922, to a family of Lebanese immigrants, who were garment industry entrepreneurs. Shaheen's grandfather, Assi Shaheen, came to the U.S. from Lebanon in the late-1800s and established silk factories in New York and New Jersey. Shaheen's father, George, joined his father, Assi, in the U.S. in the early-1900s. George ultimately started his own business, Geo. Shaheen, with his wife, Mary. In 1938, George moved his family and his business to Hawaii, where George and Mary specialized in custom garments made from silks, brocades, rayon satin, and other formal fabrics. Alfred returned to the mainland to attend Whittier College, where he excelled at math, physics, engineering and football. After graduating with a degree in aeronautical engineering just as the U.S. entered World War II, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps and became a fighter pilot, flying 84 missions over Germany, Italy and France.[5][6][7]Surf 'n Sand Hand Prints[edit]In 1945, when Shaheen returned to Hawaii from the war, he joined his parents in their custom garment business. In 1948, Shaheen founded his own garment company. In the late 1940s, a dock strike and the Korean War severely curtailed importation of goods to Hawaii, so Shaheen made his own equipment from parts he found in Honolulu's junkyards to dye and finish fabrics under the brand name Surf 'n Sand Hand Prints.[7][8][9]Shaheen distributed his clothing all over the world. He believed in celebrating cultural diversity, and his artists adapted designs from authentic sources such as rare books and ancient artifacts. Shaheen and his staff visited Tahiti, Samoa, Hong Kong and Tokyo to study the designs of the Eastern Pacific Rim. Shaheen adapted these designs to textiles and produced the Pua Lani Pareau, Antique Tapa, and Joss Sticks handprints. Shaheen established “East Meets West” boutiques in the mid-1960s in major department stores across the country.Shaheen's designs were featured in the pages of fashion magazines such as Vogue, Mademoiselle, and Harper's Bazaar. His clothes and fabrics were sold all over the world, including Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdale's, Macy's and Bullock's.[10]In the 1960s, the company diversified, adding footwear, drapery, jewelry, fragrance, and pattern kits complete with fabric and coconut buttons.[10
