When the French retailer, Printemps, opened in New York City this year, we were thrilled to finally get a glimpse of “The Red Room” which had almost become the stuff of urban legend. The abstract mosaic covered room by muralist Hildreth Meière exceeded every expectation. But we had questions! So we went straight to the source: Anna Kupik, great-grandaughter and president of the International Hildreth Meière Association. Please enjoy this brief introduction to the work of a singular artist.
Q: Hildreth’s style is generally categorized as “Art Deco”. Can you talk a bit about her influences and how her work differed from the traditional mural work of the time?
A: It is true that Hildreth Meière is celebrated as one of America’s foremost Art Deco muralists. What made her truly unique was how she operated outside any one style or medium. At a time when murals were expected to be either allegorical oil paintings or historical frescos, Hildreth brought a modern sensibility to traditionally “decorative” materials such as glass, metal, and ceramic, treating them as fine art integrated into the built environment. She mastered real space, using math, geometry, and material to complement both the viewer’s experience and the building’s form. Her approach was shaped by decades of education and personal travel. She studied at the Art Students League, the California School of Fine Arts, and the Art Institute of Chicago, and even took math courses at Columbia to qualify for service in the Navy during World War I. She joined the Navy the very moment women were permitted, aiming to become an architectural draftsman.
Though denied admission to the Beaux-Arts Institute because of her gender, she found a workaround through the School of Applied Design for Women. There, she participated in Beaux-Arts Institute projects and competitions, regularly earning top honors and gaining the attention of mentors such as Ernest Peixotto. From these early experiences, she built a career working on a commission basis, tailoring each project in close collaboration with architects to the building itself. In 1921, her connections at the Art Students League led to an introduction to Bertram Goodhue, a prominent architect who championed the start of her career. That partnership, rooted in shared values, culminated in her first major commission: The Great Hall at the National Academy of Sciences. From there, her commissions with architects and institutions across the country continued to integrate art and architecture in ways that were innovative for the time.
Q: The exploration of different mediums is notable when you look at Hildreth’s body of work. What was the process, from sketches to installation, for a mosaic mural?
A: Her mosaic murals were a triumph of design, mathematics, and collaboration.
Design and Sketches: Hildreth’s process began with pencil studies and evolved through detailed colored sketches. For larger commissions, she developed full-scale cartoons that allowed her to evaluate color, scale, and placement directly within the architectural space. Her Navy training in drafting gave her an extraordinary understanding of scale, which was essential for work in curved or vaulted spaces.
Fabrication: Once approved, these cartoons (the final design drawings used to guide fabrication) were sent to fabricators such as Pühl & Wagner in Berlin, where artisans translated her designs into mosaics. Each hand-cut mosaic segment was assembled in reverse on paper using water-soluble glue and tagged so that the installers (such as the Ravenna Mosaic Company) knew how to put it back together again onsite, setting the paper-backed tesserae segments section by section.
Materials and Color: Glass tesserae (tiles) were crafted from sand, alkalis, and metal oxides heated to over 2000 degrees. Gold was often in demand for Hildreth’s work, and this type of tesserae involved sandwiching gold leaf between layers of colored and clear glass. In the apse she designed at St. Bartholomew’s, it is said that more than 300 shades of gold were used.
Installation: The mosaics arrived on pallets and were divided into jigsaw-like segments, then reassembled on site. In the case of the "Red Room" at One Wall Street, segments were marked A1 to H3 and discreetly stamped onto one tessera in each section. Hildreth was often present for installations, ensuring accuracy and creative fidelity.
Q: The relationship she had with architects seems key to her success. What was the collaborative nature between the artist and the architect like?
A: Essential. Hildreth did not merely decorate buildings; she co-created them. Her earliest commissions came through collaborations with Bertram Goodhue and Ralph Walker. These were not simply assignments; they were design dialogues. Her commitment to historic research, her willingness to experiment with techniques and artistic styles, and her understanding of structure, scale, and light allowed her to speak the same language as architects and contribute to buildings as a creative equal.
Q: What is striking about her work is how much the murals become a part of the architecture. Was this a philosophical choice?
A: Absolutely. Hildreth once said, “When a picture painter…attacks a canvas, it is to express his own reaction, his own emotions or experience, and he alone sets the conditions and governs that painting. The whole thing is subjective, no matter what the “subject”; but no matter how personal a mural painter may be about his work—no matter how much he is expressing his own beliefs in what he does, his problem is objective—and comes to him from the outside, and his finished work exists not merely in itself, but in relation to three dimensional form—to “enclosed space” as someone has defined architecture. He is dealing, not with his own reactions alone, but with the relating of them to existing conditions and needs, outside of himself.”
This principle defined her approach. Her murals were conceived in concert with the architecture, not added as an afterthought. Radio City Music Hall is a perfect example. Her massive metal roundels do not simply adorn the façade; they define it.
Q: “The Red Room” (1931) at One Wall Street has gotten a lot of attention recently with the opening of Printemps. It is significant as her only abstract work. Can you share its history?
A: Often described as a jewel box of architectural abstraction, the “Red Room” is Hildreth Meière’s only large-scale non-figurative mosaic. Unlike her other commissions, which often feature symbolic or narrative figures, this space is composed entirely of rhythmic form, color gradation, and light—making it a rare and remarkable example of abstract architectural art.
In 1931, Hildreth collaborated with architect Ralph Walker and his assistant Perry Coke Smith to create this immersive glass mosaic installation for the Irving Trust Company. The room glows from walls to ceiling in red and gold tesserae, with gradations that echo the building’s curved stone exterior. She developed the color transitions, produced the full-scale cartoons (design drawings to guide fabrication), and oversaw the work with master mosaicists to ensure each segment was custom-fitted and precisely installed.
The One Wall Street building later passed from Irving Trust to the BNY Mellon, and in 2014 to Macklowe Properties, who converted it to residential use. Closed to the public since 2001, the “Red Room” was briefly visible in 2022 through Open House New York. It was there that IHMA met Printemps America CEO Lauren Lendrum, beginning a collaboration that led to the space’s designation as a New York City Interior Landmark in 2024.
With Printemps’ grand opening in 2025, the “Red Room” has been returned to New Yorkers and to the world! Visitors can now experience the space, reimagined by Laura Gonzalez, first hand during store hours. We at IHMA are proud to support its preservation and renewed visibility.
Q: The roundels at Radio City Music Hall are massive—18 feet across and made of metal and enamel. How did her process differ here?
A: The Dance, Drama, and Song roundels required a different kind of artistry. Too large to cast, they were hand-hammered by metalsmith Oscar Bach and finished with enamel by fusing powdered glass to mixed metal surfaces. The result was monumental in scale but radiant in detail. Hildreth worked with her assistants such as Lynn Fausett to refine sketches through multiple iterations. One reporter observing the process noted:
“Each of these sketches must be a piece of creative work...never mind how many times the artist has drawn and redrawn it.”
Q: Are there any works by Hildreth that are missing in action?
A: Yes. Her WWII triptychs are especially elusive. She supervised more than 500 and painted at least 70 herself, but only a few survive today. One major loss is the original Radio and Television Encompassing the Earth (1932), a monumental sculpture that once adorned the RKO Theater at Rockefeller Center. We like to think it is sitting in someone’s basement or garage, waiting to be rediscovered and reintroduced to the world. We also hope to rescue endangered works, such as her murals at St. Michael’s Monastery Church in Union City, NJ, whose landmarked building has gone into disrepair.
In good news, we recently helped facilitate the donation of her ceiling study for 32 Avenue of the Americas to Columbia University’s Avery Architectural & Fine Arts Library, a win for both preservation and academia. About 15 years ago we also restored and rehomed her original Prudential Insurance mosaics.
Q: As the President of the International Hildreth Meiere Association (IHMA), what are you working on to bring more awareness to this remarkable body of work?
A: The International Hildreth Meière Association (IHMA) is dedicated to preserving, promoting, and celebrating the life and work of Hildreth Meière. Our mission centers on three pillars: preservation, education, and inspiration.
Preservation: We safeguard Hildreth’s existing artworks and the stories behind them. Recent efforts include supporting the landmark designation of the “Red Room” at One Wall Street and collaborating with Columbia University’s Avery Architectural & Fine Arts Library to preserve original studies.
Education: We share her work through tours, lectures, and exhibitions. Earlier this year, we contributed to the Art Students League’s 150th Anniversary exhibition, and in past seasons, we partnered with Open House Chicago. This fall, we are excited to participate in Open House New York (October 18th weekend), where visitors can experience her art and legacy firsthand at commision locations in NYC.
Inspiration: We highlight Hildreth’s impact through media, conferences, and centennial celebrations. Two episodes of our documentary series are now complete, and we are actively seeking a distribution partner. We also continue to spotlight her influence at conferences such as Crafting the Dream at the American Art Conference, as well as milestone anniversaries like the upcoming centennial of Rockefeller Memorial Chapel in Chicago.
Through these initiatives, IHMA ensures that Hildreth Meière’s legacy is preserved and celebrated, while inspiring new generations to discover her extraordinary art.
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All photos: Courtesy or Copyright of the International Hildreth Meière Association