He studied art and design in Europe in the early 1900s, at the Académie Julien in Paris and elsewhere, including a stint in Vienna with Hoffmann.
[1][2][3] On his return to the United States, he illustrated the book Box Furniture (1909) by the Progressive designer Louise Brigham, whom he had met in Europe.
[1] Around the same time, he opened his own design studio in New York, and it was during this period that he met his future partner and wife, Gladys Goodwin.
[1] Gladys Goodwin grew up in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and moved to New York to study art and design.
[1] Already in evidence were several of their trademarks: a penchant for painting walls in rich colors like deep red and bright yellow offset by black, white, and grays; and the use of plain, factory-made furniture custom-painted to match the interior design scheme.