On May 12, 1926, a seventeen year old German boarded the SS Stuttgart, a passenger ship in the port city of Bremen, Germany. His name was Max Karl Aupperle and he had journeyed to Bremen from his hometown of Schorndorf, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, leaving behind his friends and family. He and his fellow travelers spent 10 days on the SS Stuttgart, as it made its way from Europe to New York City’s Harbor. On May 22, 1926, he disembarked at Ellis Island and started his new life as a German-American.

Germany, 1908-1926

Max Karl Aupperle was born June 21, 1908 in Schorndorf, Germany near Stuttgart, the first child of Karl & Pauline (Weik) Aupperle. His father was a tailor. In his later years, Max had childhood memories of playing with buttons in Karl’s shop, and being interested in the sewing machine. As the eldest son, Max followed in his father's tailoring footsteps and learned much of the trade from Karl. He completed 10th grade, an apprenticeship with another tailor, and trade school, before leaving Germany in 1926. On his passenger manifest from Bremen to New York City, Max’s occupation was listed as “dressmaker”. 

New York, 1926-1936

Max had an aunt (Pauline's sister) living in Philadelphia when he arrived in the US, but decided on Syracuse, New York as his new home. He had a German friend living in Syracuse and was able to quickly find work in dry cleaning and tailoring. He also began to learn English. In 1929 he joined the Custom Tailors and Designers Association (CTDA), which he credited for much of his lifelong success. The CTDA, founded for sharing ideas and techniques for design, pattern making, fitting, cutting, and tailoring, still exists today as the oldest continuously operating trade organization in the United States. His parents and siblings (Frieda, Maria, Walter, & Samuel) soon joined him in Syracuse. By 1930, the Aupperles were all living in the same home on South Avenue, with Karl and Max working as tailors. Frieda & Maria were both listed in the Syracuse city directory as "tailoress", so clearly Max wasn't the only child that inherited Karl's skills.

In 1930 Max attended the American Mitchell Designing School of New York City and completed a course in men’s garment design. In 1931 he moved west of Syracuse to Batavia, where he took a job in the tailoring shop of John G. Poultridge. On November 11, 1933 Max married Hedwig Haas, a fellow German immigrant who had also lived in Schorndorf. Hedwig had been working domestic jobs around Syracuse, including a stint as a live-in maid for Howard Chester Will, the wealthy vice president of the Will and Baumer Candle Company. By 1934, Max had opened his own tailoring business in Batavia. Their first child, Eric Max Aupperle, was born April 14, 1935.

Ann Arbor, 1936-2003

According to Max, it was a salesman who told him about a job opening at Wild Mens Shop in Ann Arbor. In 1936 he took a boat from Buffalo to Detroit, secured the position in Ann Arbor, and began supervising five people in a busy tailoring department. The Wild family were also Germans from near Stuttgart. Their store was located at 311 South State Street, between North University and Liberty. By the time Max joined them, the Wild family had been running their Ann Arbor clothing business for nearly 50 years.

By 1938, Max's parents and his brother Walter had also made the move to Ann Arbor. His father, Karl, joined him working as a tailor at Wild & Co. Walter found work at Metzger's German restaurant as a cook. His sister Frieda returned to Germany, while Samuel and Maria remained in New York.

In his free time, Max joined the Ann Arbor Civic Orchestra, known to us today as the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra. A skilled violinist, he quickly became a popular member. In both 1939 and 1940, Max won a merit award for being the most valuable player in the orchestra. As many musicians went off to World War II, he worked to keep the remaining group together. In 1941, Max served as president of the Ann Arbor Civic Orchestra. In addition to his orchestra work, Max also assisted with the war efforts by sewing army tents at Fox Tent and Awning in Ann Arbor.

On June 2, 1941, Max & Hedwig welcomed their daughter Charlotte into the world. Their third daughter Gertrude, "Trudy", would arrive on November 12, 1945. 1945 was also the year the Aupperle family purchased a cottage on Base Lake outside of Ann Arbor, which would become a destination for their growing family to rest and relax.

1946 was a life-changing year for Max Aupperle. As men returned home from World War II in droves, the supply of clothing at Wild Men's Shop was quickly being depleted. Max was friends with the director of the adult education program in the Ann Arbor Public Schools, and asked him if sewing pupils from his classes could work at Wild's. At the time, however, there was no one teaching sewing and tailoring classes, and Max was offered the job on the spot. Taking the position in education meant he would have to quit his role in the Ann Arbor Civic Orchestra, which made it a difficult decision. In the end, he accepted the role of sewing and tailoring instructor and taught his first class in February 1946.

In July of 1949, the Aupperle family was featured in the Ann Arbor News. Frieda (Aupperle) Haerer, Max's sister, moved from Germany back to the United States with her three children. A photo of them arriving at Willow Run Airport, and reuniting with their extended family, was published in the paper. Frieda and her children moved in with her parents, Karl and Pauline. Her husband, Hugo, had died in World War II.

Max kept a busy schedule, working full time at Wild's store, and teaching his adult education courses multiple nights a week. In 1954, he was elected to a three year term on the board of directors of the Custom Tailors and Designers Association (CTDA). His children attended the Ann Arbor Public Schools and Hedwig, his wife, was busy in many community organizations. In 1957 his father Karl died at the age of 73. Pauline, his mother, died in 1963 at the age of 81. They were buried together in Ann Arbor's Forest Hill Cemetery.

1964 brought more change to Max's life when Wild & Company updated their business model and discontinued their tailoring department. Mass-produced clothing was cheap and readily available, and the tailoring industry was in decline. In response, Max brought much of the equipment from Wild's store into his basement at 716 Oakland Avenue and started his own private tailoring business. In the beginning, he had a staff of four. He retained clients from Wild & Company, and named his new venture Ann Arbor Apparel Studio. Over the years Max outfitted many well known men and women in Ann Arbor, including the University of Michigan's William D. Revelli, Alexander Ruthven, and Bo Schembechler.

In May 1970, Max was named an outstanding teacher of adults by the Adult Education Association of Michigan. He was presented with a citation declaring he "gained the admiration and respect of thousands of adults who have taken his courses. It is a common experience to find his classes large and enrollments closed early in the registration periods. Always deeply interested in each student, he has demonstrated unusually successful teaching techniques in imparting clothing knowledge and skills to adults of varying backgrounds and abilities...". Since his first class in February 1946, Max had continuously taught three or four evening classes during each term. The final continuing education class he instructed was in May 1978. He had been a teacher for 32 years, educating over 2,000 students.

In November 1983, Max and Hedwig celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary by taking a trip to Alaska. They also had a dinner party at Barton Hills Country Club, hosted by their children and grandchildren. In 1997, Max was installed in the Custom Tailors and Designers Association (CTDA) Hall of Fame, and accepted a lifetime achievement award for his contribution to the trade. Hedwig died in 1998, followed by Max in 2003. He was 94 years old. They now rest together in Ann Arbor's Washtenong Memorial Park Mausoleum. Many pieces of Max's work may still be viewed in museums, including The Aupperle Collection at the Gregg Museum of Art & Design in North Carolina.

Morning Suit, ca. 1920s, Max Aupperle (1908–2003), German-American, Hand and machine sewn wool, 39" center back jacket length, The Aupperle Collection, 2015.030.001a-c, Gregg Museum of Art & Design

Irvin, Virginia Hendrickson. Self Portrait. ca. 1940. Watercolor on ivory in gilded wood frame. 23⁄8 × 17⁄8 in. (6 × 4.8 cm). Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.

Virginia Gray Hendrickson was born in Chicago on October 9, 1904, the third daughter of Forman and Edith (Gray) Hendrickson. Her father died of cerebral malaria in 1910, and her family relocated to Ann Arbor, where she would spend the majority of her life. Virginia lived a life of privilege, with live-in servants and grand homes. Her father had been the president of his own Chicago business, the F. S. Hendrickson Lumber Company, and her mother was descended from Detroit's wealthy Fisher family. In her earliest Ann Arbor years, she lived in the home of her grandparents, Charles and Arabella (Fisher) Gray, who also owned a home in the Methodist summer community of Bay View on Lake Michigan. She attended schools in Ann Arbor, as well as the exclusive Highland Hall in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania.

In her youth, Virginia displayed a natural aptitude for art.  Ann Arbor High School’s 1921 yearbook includes several of her illustrations. From 1922 through 1924, Virginia attended the Art Institute of Chicago and studied the sixteenth century painter Hans Holbein the Younger (1497-1543). She found inspiration in his miniature portraits and devoted herself to perfecting the technique, studying with miniaturist Elsie Dodge Pattee.

On December 28, 1923, The Ann Arbor Times News announced her engagement to Charles E. Irvin of Jackson, Michigan. The Jackson Citizen Patriot announced it as well, with the headline "Pretty Art Student Will Be Bride of Jackson Man". On August 16, 1924 Virginia & Charles were married at the Hendrickson family's summer home in Bay View. The service was conducted by Virginia's uncle, Dr. Arthur W. Stalker.

Virginia & Charles started their married life together in Chicago, where Charles worked as an economist, but soon found their way back to Ann Arbor. While he worked in business and real estate, Virginia continued to paint. She received steady commissions and exhibited her work all across the country and many European capitals. On January 6, 1933 Charles E. Irvin Jr., their only child, was born.

Irvin, Virginia Hendrickson. Charles E. Irvin Jr. ca. 1935. Watercolor on ivory in gold filigree case with brooch pin. Diam. 3⁄4 in. (1.9 cm). Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.

Virginia Hendrickson Irvin became a well-known name in the niche world of American portrait miniatures. Her finished pieces usually ranged in size from one inch in diameter to five by six inches. Her calling cards were engraved with "The miniature is to painting what the sonnet is to poetry: prescribed and limited, but the jewel in portraiture." Meticulous details were featured in all of her work, with all of the qualities of full-sized portraits condensed with intricate detail, some to the size of a pinhead.

Her technique involved polishing thin pieces of ivory with pumice powder so they would hold watercolor on their surface. Sketching the tiny portrait directly onto the ivory, in blue cobalt, was the next step. Using a magnifying glass, she would then paint on dabs of watercolor with small sable brushes. For the tiniest detailed work, her brushes could be as thin as an eyelash or two. Completing one of her miniature portraits usually took her about two to three weeks, with the eyes alone sometimes requiring an entire day's work. She liked to use photographs as reference material and painted many portraits of her close friends and family. Virginia chose to paint only during the day, feeling that artificial light was not conducive to distinguishing between subtle shades of color.

The work of Virginia Hendrickson Irvin was exhibited in many well known settings including The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Royal Society of Miniature Painters, Sculptors & Gravers, in London. She won countless awards and accolades for her paintings, including a 1954 Medal of Honor from the National Association of Women Artists. Her work may be found in the permanent collection of numerous museums. In 1943 Virginia was unanimously elected to membership in the Pennsylvania Society of Miniature Painters, becoming the sixty-ninth member of the Society, which was founded in 1901. In 1944, Virginia participated in the forty-fifth annual of the American Society of Miniature Painters at New York's Grand Central Galleries. She was awarded their highest honor, the Levantia White Boardman Memorial Medal for a portrait of her mother, Edith Gray Hendrickson.

Irvin, Virginia Hendrickson. Mrs. Forman S. Hendrickson. ca. 1944. Watercolor on ivory in ebonized and gold-painted wood frame. 3 5⁄8 × 4 3⁄8 in. (9.2 × 11.1 cm). Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.

Charles Irvin died in August 1956, leaving Virginia a widow. He was buried in Ann Arbor's St. Thomas Catholic Cemetery. At the time of his death he was a professor of real estate in the University of Michigan's School of Business Administration. The Irvin family lived in the Anberay apartments at 619 E. University. Charles Jr. still lived with them, and was a student at the University of Michigan law school. Virginia continued her career as an artist, while also working as a clerk at Ulrich's Bookstore, just a short walk from home. In 1958, Virginia won the National Association of Women Artists prize for her miniature painting "Reflection".

Irvin, Virginia Hendrickson. Reflection. ca. 1958. Watercolor on ivory in gilded carved wood and plaster frame. 3 3⁄8 × 4 1⁄8 in. (8.6 × 10.5 cm). Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.

1967 was a notable year in Virginia's life as her only son, Charles Edgar Irvin Jr., was ordained as a catholic priest. She commemorated the occasion with a miniature portrait of him in his black clergy shirt and white collar. Father Charlie, as he was known, would go on to spend 54 years in the priesthood in and around Ann Arbor.

Irvin, Virginia Hendrickson. Rev. Charles E. Irvin. ca. 1967. Watercolor on ivory in gilded wood frame. Diam. 3 in. (7.6 cm). Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.

In 1970 the Ann Arbor News ran an article titled "Mrs. Irvin's Painting Trade One Of Few In Country". At the age of 65 she was still receiving commissions for her paintings and living alone at her 619 E. University apartment. In 1980 she was included in the book "Women Artists in America: Eighteenth Century to the Present (1790-1980)". Virginia Hendrickson Irvin lived independently in her apartment until her mid-80s. She died on her son's birthday, January 6, 1992 at the Gilbert Residence nursing home in Ypsilanti at the age of 87. She was buried in Ann Arbor's St. Thomas Catholic Cemetery, next to her husband Charles. Her son was one of the many priests who celebrated her funeral mass. In 1998, Charles E. Irvin Jr., aka Father Charlie, donated his mother's remaining paintings to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, along with a collection of biographical materials and newspaper clippings. He died in 2021 and joined his parents in St. Thomas Cemetery.