Designer Lee Savage has created a line of luxury clutches inspired by 20th century Minimalist art and architecture that are being sold around the world.
The pieces are made from solid brass frames, plated in metal, and lined with leather. She uses metals because they can create fine points and lines. Savage creates models of the handbags in her studio in New York and sends them to a factory in Italy, where they are manufactured.
Savage was inspired by her own tastes and problems that she had finding the right handbag. She wanted a bag that was clean and minimalist, but she felt that the ones available were part of an older market.
She studied the work of Minimalist artists such as Sol LeWitt and Donald Judd, who use geometric forms and linear repetition in their work. She tried to apply those same principles to her clutches.
Savage earned a B.A. in history from the University of Virginia and studied interior design at Parsons The New School for Design in New York. She worked for a time as an interior designer and designed handbags in her spare time. In September 2013 she officially launched her eponymous company.
In her first season, Savage worked with The White Space, a showroom and incubator founded by stylist Alison Brokaw to promote young designers. The partnership was helpful to her. She hosted a presentation for her spring 2014 collection, and Barneys New York and Net-a-porter decided to carry her pieces. Her bags are now sold worldwide, with an emphasis on the Middle East, as well as online.
Learning the business component of making handbags was a challenge for Savage. She had no experience with the sales process and public relations and learned as she went.
Savage hopes to grow her one-woman business. She is in the process of figuring out a strategy and looking for the right people. She hopes to expand her collection to include more day bags and to eventually create jewelry and other accessories. She might also return to the field of interior design.
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