Eric de Kolb (March 10, 1916 – April 14, 2001) was an Austrian-born surrealistic artist, painter, sculptor, jewelry and fashion designer, commercial artist, and package designer. He was born in Vienna in 1916 and died in New York City in 2001. His artistic skills were diverse; his surrealistic paintings were created in a vast array of styles, and his mini sculptures were created in many different styles and materials. Eric de Kolb and his wife had homes in New York City and on the Isle of Capri. Life Eric de Kolb (Baron Eric de Kolb-Wartenberg) grew up in an aristocratic Viennese family. Both his father and grandfather were art collectors. Eric de Kolb became a well-known artist, famous for his fashion designs, jewelry designs, miniature sculptures, paintings, and commercial art packaging. Career De Kolb began designing when he was 5 or 6. His father had ordered an artist to paint a scene on the ceiling. Young de Kolb decided to draw something that he knew would look much better. He made designs of Poseidon and mermaids and showed them to his father. His father decided to give him art lessons. His first teacher was Otto Koening, a famous sculptor who was 80 years old at that time and had a long white beard. He told de Kolb "You make my portrait and I'll make yours." When de Kolb finished the portrait, Koening said, "Wonderful, you have talent." De Kolb studied with Koening until Koening's death, four years later. Koenig had recommended his student to the Rector of The Academy of Arts in Vienna. Later de Kolb studied at The Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. In World War II he served with the French Marines as a lieutenant. Even in service he designed clothes for such fashion greats as Lucien Lelong, Balenciaga, Elsa Schiaparelli, and others. He said, "When I was demobilized, I couldn't believe that France had lost the war. It was like the husband whose wife was unfaithful — he's always the last to know." The US Embassy in Paris gave de Kolb an interim passport and US Visa, and he sailed to the USA to design dresses for a New York department store. In this he was unsuccessful. "In France, a designer is something completely different from the designers here. In France, a designer does nothing but sketch and drape. I am not a pattern maker. In