Following a free-spirited childhood, Tony Duquette
began his formal training at the distinguished
Chouinard School of Art in Los Angeles, California,
in the early 1930s. During this time, the young Tony
was hired by Bullock’s department stores to create
interiors that would set the mood of changing
seasons. He continued working in display and
advertising for department stores postgraduation
until he was discovered by Elsie de Wolfe in 1941.
De Wolfe, also referred to as Lady Mendl through
her marriage to Sir Charles Mendl, was known as
the “First Lady of Interior Decoration” and perhaps
the first professional interior designer. Duquette
assisted de Wolfe with the interiors of her new
Beverly Hills home and went on, with her sponsor-
ship, to a successful international career in design.
The drawing room at Dawnridge,
Tony Duquette’s home in Beverly Hills, c. 1995.
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