Monica Gottlieb

Are fashion and style one and the same?  No.

“Fashion fades, only style remains the same” Coco Chanel.

One lady who exudes style is Monika Gottlieb. 

Monika is an international fashion collector and expert who has been curating Haute Couture pieces for over 50 years and has amassed an enviable collection of stunning gowns and pieces from designers such as Chanel, Givenchy, Dior, Balmain, Oscar de la Renta and many more. Her collection presently comprises 2,500 pieces.

She was born in Dusseldorf, Germany in 1946. Her parents owned a unique shop that sold perfume and luxury items which led to Monika’s love of fashion and beautiful things. She joined the family business and as a result came to meet many of the top fashion designers of the day. At the end of World War Two the perfumery became synonymous with style being the only stockist of designer bags, scarves and luxury leather goods.  It was also the first to present Christian Dior perfume in Dusseldorf.

She is one of the few surviving people in the world who personally knew Christian Dior whom she met when she was just four years old. When other little girls her age were playing with dolls, she was travelling the world with her mother attending fashion shows and visiting designer fashion houses.

In addition to Japanese, Monika is also fluent in five other languages which gives her special insight into the world of fashion. Her collection focuses on the 1950’s to 1970’s. She is of that epoch

However, with her collection, Monika Gottlieb sees herself as a keeper and mediator of fashion history, which for her, has great cultural significance. For every dress, every accessory, every fashion drawing from her collection, she can tell a story that refers to its cultural history. According to her, there is still little awareness of the relevance of fashion to the cultural development of society. She says, “For museums, too, fashion is a way of getting to grips with culture more quickly. It’s not a superficial issue!”

In June 2019, the Museum of Style Icons was proud to have held an exhibition of Ms Gottlieb’s unique collection entitled “Fashion and Fantasy – A Lifetime Curation of Haute Couture”.

“Simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance” Coco Chanel