Museum Quality: ; Judith Leiber's Handbags Are Functional Art

Summary

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PHILADELPHIA - Judith Leiber pulls six handbags from deep inside her Manhattan bedroom's walk-in closet. One black, two brown, two more black, their gilded chains and leather straps neatly tucked under gold clasps.

That's surprising. Shouldn't there be a jewel-encrusted clutch somewhere in the personal collection of this renowned handbag designer-to-the-stars? Where is the ladybug covered in red rhinestones and dotted with onyx? The famed multicolored pig? The leather windowpane clutch inspired by painter Piet Mondrian?

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Extract

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Museum Quality: ; Judith Leiber's Handbags Are Functional Art

Leiber, dressed all in black, laughs quietly. Her 85-year-old eyes are the only things sparkling in the room. Her own functional baubles have been ransacked by curators for museum exhibits, including "Fashioning Art: Handbags by Judith Leiber," which opened last week at Pennsylvania's James A. Michener Art Museu...

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