Rago Auctions

A true Renaissance man, the Austrian-born artist Eric de Kolb was a painter, sculptor, fashion designer, jewelry designer, interior designer, commercial artist and author. de Kolb studied at the Academy of Arts in Vienna and Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. During World War II he was a lieutenant for the French Marines yet still found time to design clothing for fashion icons such as Elsa Schiaparelli and Balenciaga. He relocated to New York where he founded a firm of industrial designers, Eric de Kolb Designers winning three package design Oscars for his work.

In the 1970s de Kolb sculpted replicas of works from his ancient sculpture and Aztec jewelry collections. He used a method called lost wax casting in which a tiny wax sculpture is converted to a clay form mold that is then heated until the wax flows out. The mold is then filled with 14 karat gold before it is broken to release a one-of-a-kind cast piece. His designer jewelry was sold in major department stores and advertised full page in major newspapers throughout the United States.

De Kolb’s various creative endeavors also included painting The Miracles of St. Anthony for Pope John Paul II and designing nightclubs and Riviera villas. He was the owner of Gallery d’Hautbarr and author of African Sooth Sayers and Ashanti Gold Weights among other titles.