May 2013
7 posts
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Silly Saturday: Star Trek Enterprise Vintage...
Silly Saturday presents a mash-up of the command bridge of Star Trek’s Starship Enterprise with Mad Men’s mid-century style. Illustrator Matt Wiley’s advertisement below shows what we might have expected if Don Draper had the United Federation of Planets as a client. “Gleaming in brushed chrome, easy to clean as Deuterium plate.”
Thanks to Kevin Lee Allen Design for...
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'Star Trek' Production Designer Jim Mees Dies
The Hollywood Reporter recently reported that Jim Mees, production designer who was best known for his work on the “Star Trek” television series of the 1980s and 1990s, died on March 27, 2013 of pancreatic cancer.
Fourteen of Mees’s thirty year career were spent designing futuristic sets for “Star Trek:The Next Generation,” “Voyager” and “Star Trek: Enterprise.” He earned five...
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Silly Saturday: Calling All Chubbies
Retronaut.com recently posted a strange politically incorrect yet amusing series of Lane Bryant advertisements on their site. Apparently during the earlier part of the Twentieth Century it had been acceptable to refer to larger women as “stout” and “chubbies.” It’s difficult, however, to imagine that doing so would increase sales.
One example is shown here. See the...
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Dodge and Burn: George Eastman House's New Tumblr...
Design and Desire in the Twentieth Century is pleased to welcome the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film to tumblr. “Dodge and Burn” is the museum’s new blog, Their first post was dated March 14, 2013 (also birthday of renowned photographer Diane Arbus). The blog features outstanding photos from the museum’s collection such as the self-portrait...
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Frank Lloyd Wright Crashed on Park Avenue
A significant piece of New York City’s architectural heritage was lost early in April 2013 when the Hoffmann Auto Showroom interior designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, and considered a fore runner of the Guggenheim Museum design, was demolished. The showroom had been on the first floor of a building located at the corner of Park Avenue and East 56th Street.
According to Crain’s New York...
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Storm Thorgerson, Pink Floyd Album Artist...
Storm Thorgerson, the designer who is best known for his work designing album covers for the rock band Pink Floyd, died on April 18, 2013 after a battle with cancer, as reported by the Los Angeles Times. Perhaps the most iconic of Thorgerson’s covers was the rainbow prism for Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon.”
According to the LA Times’ obit, Thorgerson worked both...
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Fifty Years of the Instamatic Camera
The Kodak Instamatic camera celebrates it’s 50th anniversary this year. Introduced in March 1963, the Instamatic revolutionized amateur photography in its day with it’s four shot flashcube and instant loading film cartridge. The Instamatic influenced many competitors’ products for years.
According to the George Eastman House blog, “It was introduced at a time when camera...
April 2013
8 posts
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Architect Paolo Soleri (1919-2013)
Architect and theorist, Paolo Soleri, died on April 9, 2013. According to archdaily.com:
Paolo Soleri spent a lifetime investigating how architecture, specifically the architecture of the city, could support the countless possibilities of human aspiration. The urban project he founded, Arcosanti, 65 miles north of Phoenix, was described by NEWSWEEK magazine as “…the most important urban...
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Edith Head: Queen of Hollywood Costume Design
Even if you’re not an aficionado of classic Hollywood Cinema, chances are good that you are familiar with costume designer, Edith Head. Head reigned as the leading Hollywood costume designer for nearly five decades, earning thirty-five Oscar nominations and winning eight awards1 for costume design — the most for a woman in any motion picture category.2 But did you know that this...
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Coffee Anyone?
Just for fun, how about a mid-century mid-morning pick up? Imagine serving your hot piping cup of Maxwell House Coffee from this Pyrex coffee carafe from the 1960’s. Thanks to Klappersack’s for sharing this image:
Pyrex Coffee Carafe (circa 1960). Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/indiaromeo/423267627/
For everything you ever wanted to know about Pyrex and Corning Ware check...
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New Hampshire's Palace Theatre
Leon Lempert & Son (architects), Palace Theatre. Manchester, New Hampshire (1915). Source: http://www.wegoplaces.com/User%20Interface/Images/Itinerary%20Item%20Images /USA/NH/Manchester/48773_Palace%20Theatre.jpg
The newest addition to our blog roll, The Daily Kylie, posted an article about a recent visit to The Palace Theatre in Manchester, New Hampshire. Built in 1914-1915 by Greek...
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Silly Saturday: "Bad Dog" Leaves His Mark
Richard Jackson, Bad Dog (2013). Source: http://www.architizer.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/85.jpg
It seems that everyone’s a critic, but Califoria artist Richard Jackson really makes his point — or should we say the pointer makes a point. The larger than life dog is part of a retrospective of the artist’s career, “Richard Jackson: Ain’t Painting a Pain” on now through...
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Glam! The Performance of Style
By now you’ve probably heard the hype about David Bowie’s new album, The Next Day, his first release in over ten years, but did you also know that his Glam Rock style form the late 1960s and 1970s is the subject of an exhibition at Tate Liverpool in the UK? Glam! The Performance of Style looks at Bowie’s impact upon the fashion, Rock and art scene of that period.
The show...
March 2013
8 posts
5 tags
Silly Saturday: Marilyn Peep Show
Since Easter is coming, we’re reblogging a post form earlier this year that illustrates some creative uses for eveyone’s favorite Easter candy, Peeps® marshmallow candies.
Happy Easter! And for those of you who don’t celebrate Easter, Happy Spring!
Karyn Zupke, Marilyn Monroe (n.d.). Copyright 2012 PeepTopia! Source:...
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Frank Lloyd Wright's Home Movies
Beret Balestrieri Kohn writes in the Milwaukee Museum of Art’s blog “Under the Wings” about a recent donation to the institution’s archives of films from the personal collection of Joan Salzstein, the grandaughter of architect Dagmar Adler. The donated films features candid shots of Frank Lloyd Wright interacting with students and visitors at Taliesin his home in Wisconsin....
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The Whimsical Work of Matte Stephens
Although he wasn’t yet alive in the 1950s, illustrator Matte Stephens’ work recaptures the spirit of mid-century designers such as Charles and Ray Eames, Alexander Girard, and Irving Harper. Stephens has done work for IBM, Disney, American Express and Herman Miller among others.
Thanks to our friends at Aqua-Velvet for introducing us to the work of this brilliant young artist.
Read...
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Getting There: How Design Influences Travel
Arthur Radebaugh, Advertisement for Bohn Aluminum and Brass Corporation (circa 1940s). Source: http://designmuseumboston.org/images/exhibits/gettingthere/gallery/gettingthere_gal-10.jpghttp://photo-muse.blogspot.com/
“Getting There: How Design Influences Travel” is an exhibition organized by the Design Museum of Boston and aptly located in Terminal E of Boston’s Logan...
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Photographer Gabriele Basilico (1944-2013)
“Monuments embarrass me. I have no friendship for castles.” -Gabriele Basilico
Last month The Guardian reported the death of documentary photographer Gabriele Basilico. Trained as an architect, Basilico gained international attention for his photographs of factory buildings and apartment blocks. In the 1990’s the photographer captured the bleak landscapes of Berlin after the fall of the...
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Stephen Burrows: When Fashion Danced
Stephen Burrows was one of the hottest young fashion designers of New York City’s disco and music scenes in the 1970s. His creations captured the spotlight with innovative use of bright wild colors and silky flowing fabrics. Burrows’ celebrity clients include Barbra Streisand, Cher, Liza Minnelli and Dianna Ross among many others.
In the 1980s, Burrows career took a downturn, but...
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Silly Saturday: Wacky Niagara Falls Concept Car
Illustrator Bruce McCall, whose works appear regularly in The New Yorker, has created a concept car inspired both by innovative designer Brooks Stevens and one of the great natural wonders of the world — Niagara Falls!
View more of McCall’s off-the-wall illustrations.
Read our recent posts on Brooks Stevens.
Bruce McCall, Niagara Automobile, (Date unknown). Source: ...
February 2013
6 posts
Update: Bertrand Goldberg's Prentice Hospital
Design and Desire in the Twentieth Century has been following the fate of Bertrand Goldberg’s Prentice Hospital in Chicago, IL since last fall.
The latest news from the Windy City is not encouraging, according to a Februrary 7 post on Archpaper:
Amid the latest in a series of temporary reprieves, Bertrand Goldberg’s former Prentice Women’s Hospital was again denied landmark status by...
Brooks Stevens: The Designer Who Made Milwaukee...
This post is third and last in a series on mid-century industrial designer, Brooks Stevens. Read Parts One and Two.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based designer Brooks Stevens developed a range of designs for products such as automobiles, engines, household appliances, farm equipment and even railroad cars. He is perhaps most recognized for his dramatic redesign of the iconic Oscar Meyer Weinermobile in...
Brooks Stevens: The Designer Who Made Milwaukee...
This post is second in a series on mid-century industrial designer, Brooks Stevens. Read Part One.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin based designer Brooks Stevens is perhaps most recognized for his dramatic redesign of the iconic Oscar Meyer Weinermobile in 1958. During the designer’s career Stevens developed a range of designs for products such as automobiles, engines, household appliances, farm equipment...
Brooks Stevens: The Designer Who Made Milwaukee...
“Man can live with man all over the world, if man will trade with man. I’d rather compete with other countries in the marketplace than in the rocket place.” –Brooks Stevens Schlitz Beer is generally known as “The Beer that Made Milwaukee Famous,” yet Brooks Stevens is the man who is not as well-known for making Milwaukee famous for great design in the mid-Twentieth Century....
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Silly Saturday: The Most Delicious Architecture
During the recent holiday season Architizer News held its first gingerbread competition. The winning entry was submitted by Team Jacussi’s cookie construction of Oscar Niemeyer’s famed National Congress of Brazil which is shown here. Other notable entries included gingerbread versions of Philip Johnson’s Glass House and a Taos Pueblo. View these and other delicious entries on the...
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Damn Good Advice from George Lois
Legendary advertising executive, art director, designer and author George Lois has often been referred to as the “Original Mad Man” or the “Real Mad Man,” although he abhors the comparison. According to Lois, “‘Mad Men’ misrepresents the advertising industry of my time by ignoring the dynamics of the Creative Revolution that changed the world of...
January 2013
7 posts
3 tags
Happy 50th Anniversary Marin County Civic Center
A big thanks to Prairie Mod for sharing an article about a special postmark commemorating the 50th anniversary of one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s most futuristic looking buildings, the Marin County Civic Center. Read More.
At fifty the Marin County Civic Center Still looks far ahead of its time.
Watch a slide show of the Marin County Civic Center by California architect Ron Yeo.
Frank Lloyd...
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Silly Saturday: Marilyn Peep Show
Karyn Zupke, Marilyn Monroe (n.d.). Copyright 2012 PeepTopia! Source: http://peeptopia.tumblr.com/post/37730474739/marilyn-monroe
Apologies for the rather misleading headline, but we just couldn’t resist. If you look closely at the image posted here, you can see that the Andy Warhol inspired portrait of actress Marilyn Monroe is made of Peeps® marshmallow candies. How Sweet it is!
Visit...
The Other Architect In Oak Park
Photo credit: Bill Bowen
While Frank Lloyd Wright is undoubtedly the most famous architect to have designed and built homes in Oak Park, Illinois, he was by no means the only one. In this 2007 photo I’m standing on the porch of George W. Maher’s Pleasant Home. Designslinger recently ran a fine blog post about the house. If you do visit Oak Park, Pleasant Home is located a only few...
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Eight of The Most Futuristic Cities That Never...
With the beginning of a new year, our thoughts usually turn to the future and to better times ahead. In this spirit we’re sharing renderings of Le Corbusier’s “Contemporary City for Three Million Inhabitants.” This image was originally posted on io9 as one of the “The Most Futuristic Cities That Never Existed.”
Le Corbusier, Contemporary City for Three...
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In David Byrne's Office
Photographer Gil Inouoe shares an intimate look at the creative space of one of the most innovative artists and musicians of the late Twentieth Century, former Talking Heads front man, David Byrne.
To view more images, visit Colt+Rane.
Gil Inouoe, David Byrne’s Office (2012). Source: http://colt-rane.com/wp-content/uploads/ip7driv3copiec.jpeg
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Vintage White Tower Restaurants
Our friends at Art Deco Architecture recently shared this terrific photo of a vintage White Tower Restaurant in Baltimore, Maryland. The photo is included in the online portfolio, “Hidden Baltimore” by photographer Michael Horsley.
Michael Horsley. White Tower Hamburgers, 550 N Howard Street, (1985). Source:...
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Silly Saturday: Sandwiched In
Feeling a bit peckish? Do you need a little snack? Here’s a way to fufill your hunger for art and food at the same time. We’re sharing a post on Sandwich Art found on the Design Observer Blog. The sandwiches, created by Brittany Powell, were inspired by artists Jackson Pollack (shown below), Marcel Duchamp, Piet Mondrian, Mark Rothko and Christo, among others. See more sandwiches on...
December 2012
8 posts
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Brazilian Modernist Architect, Oscar Niemeyer...
In December 2012 architecture lost one of its legends - Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer died at age 104. He is perhaps best remembered for the design of Brazil’s capital and his involvement with the development of the United Nations’ building in New York City.
In remembrance of Niemeyer, we’re sharing this tribute by commentator and radio host Edward Lifson, which was...
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The Last New Year's Eve for the Lenox Lounge
Lenox Lounge Exterior. Photographer unknown. Copyright 2012 Black Enterprise. Source: http://cdn-live2.blackenterprise.net/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2012/12/lenox-lounge-closing.jpg
Very sad news was posted recently on Lost New York. The legendary Harlem jazz club, The Lenox Lounge, closes on December 31, 2012.
The club first opened as a speakeasy in 1929; Jazz greats such as Billie...
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The Life and Lines of R.O. Blechman
Designer and author Stephen Heller perhaps best describes the work of cartoonist R.O. Blechman: “Although many cartoonists have copied the shaky look, no one has ever duplicated the human qualities of his everyman … images.” Blechman’s first cartoons began to gain notoriety in the 1950s and 1960s. His work, however, was very different from most cartoons of the period. Blechman’s approach to...
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Postcards: The Tweets Of Their Day
In the time before computers and social media, if one wanted to send a brief informal message, one scribbled their thoughts on the back of a postcard. Fast Company’s Co.Design blog recently posted a review of a new exhibit at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) called, “The Postcard Age.” The show features numerous postcards from the Museum’s Leonard A. Lauder collection....
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The Eames' Home of Steel and Glass, 1950
Thank you to Aqua-Velvet for posting these gorgeous images taken by LIFE magazine photographer Peter Stackpole for a short print feature entitled, “A Designer’s Home of His Own: Charles Eames builds a home of steel and glass.” The photos were originally published on September 11, 1950.
View the rest of the images and the Aqua-Velvet post.
View more images of Charles and Ray Eames on...
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You Win Some, You Lose Some
While the future looks bright for the David Wright House in Tuscon, AZ, a buyer has been found for the house who intends to preserve this important example of Frank Lloyd Wright ‘s mid-century southwestern architecture. More details. Frank Lloyd Wright, David Wright House (1950-52), Tucson, AZ. Photography credit: Pedro Guerrero, 1952. Source:...
November 2012
7 posts
4 tags
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Harry Bertoia: Sound + Vision
A tiny gallery off of the first floor main gallery of the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York houses a unique exhibition of mid-Twentieth century sculpture, metalwork, tonal recordings and furniture design. At first glance the viewer might think that the show was a collection of art by of a group of extremely talented individuals, but he or she...
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Seventies' Soul Train Style
Before MTV there was Soul Train — “The Hippest Trip in America.” The television dance show that aired from 1971 to 2006 was to urban dance music of the Seventies what Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand” was to pop music of the 1950s and 1960s. Soul Train appealed not only to teens from the inner-city, but also to suburban teens who tuned in to the show to discover...
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Celebrating Fifty Years of the Studio Glass...
The American Studio Glass movement celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. The movement’s founders were ceramist and educator Harvey K. Littleton and glass research scientist Dominick Labino whose efforts resulted in “a small, inexpensive furnacein which glass could be melted and worked, making it affordable and possible for the first time for artists to blow glass in independent...
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Silly Saturday: Go Frank Go!
Never let it be said that architect and designer Frank Gehry wouldn’t go the extra mile to make a sale. In this 1972 photo by Ralph Morse, Gehry is shown demonstrating the structural integrity of his compressed cardboard desk. Thank you to Eloise Moorehead for sharing this photo originally posted on the edithsheads blog.
Ralph Morse, Frank Gehry (1972). Source:...
Design and Desire Blogroll Updated
One more thing to tick off our “to-do” list — we’ve finally updated our blogroll. Blogs that were taken offline or hadn’t been updated within the past year have been deleted from our lists.
But don’t fret, we’ve added several new quality blogs to the list: The Fox is Black, Graphically Inclined, Eloise Moorehead, grain edit and Jim Mann - Designs on...
