ABSTRACT
In 1987, the New York Times marked the passing of William Pahlmann with a generous admiration of the interior decorator's distinctive style and many innovations. Pahlmann is also acknowledged as innovator of the American department store model room as a semi-permanent display of residential furnishings and home decorating advice. His scrapbooks document ten themed and fully realized series of model rooms he designed from 1937 through 1942 while head of the department of interior design at Lord & Taylor, the Manhattan Fifth Avenue department store. Pahlmann had arrived at Lord & Taylor in 1936 as a trained interior decorator with his own shop and prominent clientele. One of Pahlmann's most significant decorating commissions at Lord & Taylor came soon after his hiring. Pahlmann's work at Lord & Taylor ended in 1942 when he entered the United States Army Air Corps (later renamed the United States Army Air Forces) as a volunteer.
