Offered here is a vintage men’s necktie from the Estate of / Personal Collection of famous Mid-century Modern (MCM) furniture designer Vladimir Kagan (Am., 1927-2016).

This tie is: Henri VI, Chicago, Illinois, Woven in Italy, All Silk, Weighted up to 50%, with original price tag at $12.50. It’s a really cool Mid-century Modern era geometric tie with rosettes motif.

In 1997, Vladimir Kagan’s Omnibus collection was in all 360 Gucci stores. Gucci’s Creative Director, Tom Ford, was a Kagan fan… Tom referred to him as his “idol”. Kagan’s celebrity clients through the years had included Marilyn Monroe and Gary Cooper.

I have 30-some ties from the estate of Kagan (and his designer-wife Erica Wilson). Their estate was large and included many things. On January 25, 2023, Freeman’s auction house in Philadelphia held their auction, titled “The Personal Collection Of Vladimir Kagan”.

That auction included abstract paintings by artists such as James Suzuki and Jason Crum, embroidery by Kagan’s wife, rugs / carpets such as Kazak and Kuba, metal-ware by Archibald Knox, glass by Galle and others, Kagan-designed furniture and lighting, an autographed Tom Ford monograph book, etc.

Freeman’s is a big auction house and they’re not going to handle everything from every estate. They want what they think are the highlights and all the other estate items are relegated to or passed on by referral to smaller, so-called ‘country auctions’ in the Philadelphia area.

The country auction house that got the Kagan estate items that Freeman’s didn’t want to handle was where I acquired Kagan’s neckties, as a ‘lot’. They also had embroidery by his wife, unattributed artworks, the couples’ library of books minus things like the Tom Ford book, clothing, knicknacks, some jewelry, etc. There were some real goodies at the little auction, including certain books that I was surprised Freeman’s missed.

In the Kagan necktie lot there were ties spanning the period of the 1950’s to the 2000’s. Kagan had an eclectic bunch of ties ranging from ‘straight’ to really artsy. They ranged from high-end like Hermes to handmade (maybe by his wife or friends).

There were ties in the collection with labels from stores / brands that many people have heard of, like Brooks Brothers and Alexander Julian. But, there were also ties with labels / names that I really can’t find any information on at all.

The ties from the Kagan collection represent the man behind the iconic designs he created. Maybe he would chosen a more straight laced type of tie to wear when meeting an important client like Marilyn Monroe. Maybe he would’ve worn a more artsy tie when going to an event at the Museum of Modern Art. He was human. Some of his ties have coffee stains on them. He worked in a professional capacity since circa 1950, so some of his oldest ties really are a bit ravaged by time.

It’ll take me a while to list all of the 30-some Kagan ties on eBay. Check back with me from time to time in the coming weeks!