Born Dorothy Wright on October 14, 1897, in Santa Rosa, California, she was the daughter of Frederick L. Wright, a chemistry professor, and Bessie Calderwood Wright, a teacher. While studying anthropology, art, and teaching at San Jose State Teacher's College and at the University of California, Berkeley, she was advised to experiment with textile design. She bought a small portable loom and taught herself how to weave. In 1928, she married Leon Liebes, a businessman. They divorced in 1940, although Dorothy Liebes retained his surname professionally. In 1948 she married the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, Relman Morin.
Career
After several years as a schoolteacher, Liebes decided to become a textile designer, and studied weaving at Hull House, Chicago, and made study trips to France, Italy, Guatemala, and Mexico to learn about traditional weaving forms. Her first studio, opened at 526 Powell Street in San Francisco in 1930, specialized in custom handwoven pieces for architects and interior designers. In 1935, Liebes met architect Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin. Wright had an influence in her design philosophy. Dorothy Liebes Design, Inc. was opened in 1937, though her husband opposed, in San Francisco. By 1938 she had seventeen men and women working in her studio. In 1942, Liebes moved her studio in San Francisco to 545 Sutter Street. Following demand, she opened a second studio in New York. She relocated full-time to New York City in 1948. Her fabrics were known for their bold colour combinations and interesting textures, and often used unexpected materials such as feathers, plastics, metallics, jute, ticker tape, leather strips, and bamboo. They were commissioned by architects, including Frank Lloyd Wright, Edward Durell Stone, Miller and Pflueger and Samuel Marx. Other clients included King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia, the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite, and the Paramount Theatre in Oakland, California. Her textiles were also used in airplanes, ocean liners, theatres and hotels. Liebes was a design consultant for companies such as DuPont, Dow, Bigelow-Sanford, and Goodall Fabrics of Sanford, Maine. A promoter of textile mass-production, she advised on the development of synthetic fibres, and assisted in the development of machinery that could replicate the aesthetic irregularities and unevenesses of hand-loomed fabrics. From 1955 to 1971 Liebes acted as DuPont's home furnishings consultant. As a spokesperson for the company, she helped the general public overcome adversities to synthetic fabrics. Liebes is recognized for introducing therapeutic craft programs for World War II veterans across America. In 1942, she was appointed as National Director, Division of Arts & Skills, American Red Cross. From 1961 - 1972, acclaimed artist Emma Amos worked as a designer/weaver for Dorothy Liebes.
