Venetian handbag designer Giuliana Camerino dies

[May 12, 2010]  MILAN (AP) -- Giuliana Coen Camerino, designer of handbags carried by Grace Kelly, Liz Taylor and others, has died at age 90.

Camerino died in Venice, home of the fashion house she founded in 1945 called Roberta di Camerino.

Camerino is credited with making handbags a fashion item. Her distinctive and timeless handbags typically sport brass clasps created by Venetian craftsman and might be made of velvet woven on antique looms.

She started designing handbags while in Switzerland during World War II after she fled Italy to avoid persecution of Jews. Her talents were recognized by the Whitney Museum of American Art with an exhibit in 1980.

Camerino will be buried in Venice's Jewish cemetery on Thursday.

[Associated Press]

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