Geoffrey Beene was one of America’s fashion greats who will be remembered for pioneering a newfound freedom for women breaking through career barriers – with a wardrobe that required unrestricted movement and speed.

Pieces from the designer’s iconic archive will now be available – for a good cause.

On November 20, leading Chicago fine art auction house Hindman is hosting Property From The Geoffrey Beene Archive: Clothes That Care. The auction features some 243 lots from the Geoffrey Beene Archive, offering a fascinating view into the legacy of the legendary American designer – from garments to sketches, design studio mannequins, and House of Lesage embroidery samples.

“I had the Geoffrey Beene Foundation donate the Geoffrey Beene archives to the Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Center at Memorial Sloan Kettering in 2015 to enable Memorial Sloan Kettering to raise additional funds for critical new cancer research initiatives,” said G. Thompson (Tom) Hutton, who founded the Geoffrey Beene Foundation in 2006 to support critical causes. Hutton serves as the Foundation’s CEO, and his wife Mara as its Executive Vice President.

“Since I founded the GBCRC IN 2006, we have funded over 135 new innovative and revolutionary research investigations into all cancers, which have resulted in major breakthroughs and new treatments for cancer victims,” Hutton added. “We are on the threshold of major new breakthroughs so it is a critical time for more funding of new cancer research which helps explain the timing of the auction.”

The timing is also a boon for fashion enthusiasts who will be able to see up close just why Beene is considered one of the most important designers in American fashion history.  According to Hutton, the lots for auction “represent a broad sample of Geoffrey Beene’s work over the decades. Most of the designs are his original samples for his runway shows and trunk shows. Some are one-of-a-kind. They are all important because Geoffrey Beene dressed women on the outside and the sale of his designs will address (benefit) the inside to save and improve lives.”

Click here for more information and to view all lots.

“Mr. Beene was designated by the Smithsonian Institute as ‘an American Original,’” Hutton continued.  “His legacy through the Geoffrey Beene Foundation and the Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Center at Memorial Sloan Kettering continues that legacy. The auction of his archives will help enable the brightest scientists at MSK to make advances to save lives.”