The Elizabeth Taylor Collection

A landmark global exhibition and nine cities tour that rounded up in a full week of auctions attended by more than 52000 visitors in New York. Taylor was presented as pinnacle of beauty, passion and talent and framed under the philanthropic efforts that rounded up her career.

A large-scale exhibition in New York and a traveling exhibition which toured six additional cities, successfully introduced more than 1770 objects –from haute couture and jewelry to Impressionist paintings and film memorabilia– to an audience of over 52,000 visitors from over 36 countries. A kaleidoscopic personality with a vexing history equally full of truth, myth and fame, this project posed strategic and creative challenges centered on how to approach Ms. Taylor’s life in a fair and balanced way, as well as to find the appropriate tone of voice to be used in each of the regions around the globe where this collection was presented. Full of storytelling possibilities, the exhibitions were then curated to frame different chapters of her life, exulting within each, a major facet of her personality. A contemporary version of Bodoni –the archetypal romantic typeface– was chosen to illustrate through its contrasting strokes, the tonalities of Elizabeth Taylor’s character. Strong vertical lines paired with delicate serifs served to convey the elegance and power of her life as an actress and fashion icon. Typography was subsequently married to color, wrapping all the architectural, editorial, digital and advertising elements in a monochromatic symphony of purple, Ms. Taylor’s favorite color. Haute couture photo shoots, along with an expansive search of archival imagery coming from global sources, were key to bringing this story to life. In an unprecedented display, the Rockefeller Center galleries were transformed in an evocative space that narrated the journey of Elizabeth Taylor as a pinnacle of beauty, passion and talent, ultimately transformed by the philanthropic efforts that sealed her career.