INSIDE:

Mikveh Makes
Music At JCC

What's On Mike
Binder's 'Mind' ..

The Aggression
Of Girls

78

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86

SUZANNE CHESSLER
Special to the Jewish News

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small drawing board in Ruth
Adler Schnee's Southfield con-
dominium has been used for
big design projects. It rests on
a cabinet behind her desk, but it doesn't
rest for very long.
Schnee, 79, who remains active in her
prize-winning interior design career,
recently used the board to work on reis-
sued fabric patterns, commissions for pri-
vate buildings and an exhibit that will
showcase her ventures over the past 55
years.
The exhibit, "Ruth Adler Schnee: A
Detroit Treasure," will fill the Janice
Charach Epstein Gallery at the Jewish
Community in West Bloomfield with
swatches of modern materials she's envi-
sioned, pictures of enclosed spaces she's
planned, sketches of ideas she's developed
and written descriptions of projects she's
tackled.
Organizing items for the exhibit, which
runs through Dec. 22, has allowed her
time to reminisce about her artistry, the
business she ran with her late husband
and the influence of family. The artist will
discuss "The Story Behind the Story"
7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 21, at the
gallery.

In Love With Color

Ruth Adler Schnee:
Her designs are featured
in "Ruth Adler Schnee:
A Detroit Treasure,"
currently on view at the
Janice Charach Epstein
Gallery in the Jewish
Community Cent*
in West Bloomfield.

"I love color, and I have fun working
with it," says Schnee, who has arranged
the lower level of her home for profes-
sional projects. "I think of my designs as
a blend of modern and classical elements
inspired by my surroundings.
"When I get commissions for building
interiors, I have to get to know the peo-
ple I'm assisting. What I design must
reflect their lifestyles. I'm glad to say I
have made many friends through this
process, and I've never had to advertise
because commissions have come through
their referrals."
An early family friendship in Germany
helped launch Schnee into her successful
career. Her mother, Marie Adler, a
Bauhaus calligraphy student, introduced
the young Schnee to neighbor Paul Klee,
a Modernism pioneer. Schnee and her
brother were allowed to play in Klee's stu-
dio, where she became intrigued by his
innovative abstract paintings and was able
to take some instruction.
The Southfield designer, whose family
DESIGNING WOMAN on page 80