Henry Dreyfuss Transforms the Persian Room

Joseph Urban’s original Art Moderne style for the Persian Room had been modified several times after its 1934 opening, and as part of Conrad Hilton’s general renovation of The Plaza, it was decided to completely modernize it in 1950. Chosen for this project was the noted industrial designer Henry Dreyfuss, whose firm was responsible for many icons of modern design, including the Honeywell round thermostat, the Princess and Trimline telephones, and the Polaroid Land camera. More significantly, Dreyfuss was also responsible for the luxe interiors of the 20th Century Limited supertrain as well as several ocean liner interiors. (The fact that he had been a longtime Plaza regular since the 1930s was also in his favor.)

After a thorough study of Persian motifs, a blue-and-green color scheme was decided upon. Then Dreyfuss stripped the room to its basics, installing two large screens with a white-and-gold diamond pattern as its centerpiece (here), upon which bronze figures depicting Persian hunters were mounted. A raised terrace was constructed around its perimeter, and the finishing touch consisted of metallic mesh curtains, custom-made by Dorothy Liebes. Dreyfuss also designed the china and the menu (here), which reworked the diamond pattern. The room reopened on September 28, 1950, after $200,000 had been spent on its renovation, and would undergo its next, and final, renovation in 1973.