Sleep On It
Having a tough time getting a good night’s sleep? Well don’t think any of these 17 Strange and Interesting Beds would make it any easier for you, via DesignCrave.
Canopy bed sculpture by Francois Lalanne.
Source: http://designcrave.frsucrave.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/DC071810-H.jpg
Interview With Massimo Vignelli
Designer Massimo Vignelli discusses his career in this interview from April 2010.
Examples of the Vignellis’ work.
Source:http://observatory.designobserver.com/media/slideshows/vignelli_ss_4.jpg
Massimo and Leila Vignelli recently donated their archives to the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in New York State. The university currently houses the collection of design pioneers Lester Beall, Will Burtin and several others. Read more details at nytimes.com.
More:
Debbie Milman’s interview with Vignelli for Design Observer.
Press release from RIT.
Rohlfs Exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum
Courtesy of Curated Magazine’s blog:
Charles Rohlfs (1853-1936) drew inspiration from both the Art Nouveau and the Arts & Crafts movements. An exhibition of his work is on now at the Metropolitan Museum in New York City through January 23, 2011. Visit Curated’s blog for more stunning examples of Rohlfs’ work and information on the exhibition.
Charles Rohlfs, Chairs (date unknown). Photo credit:Jacob Breinholt
Source:http://www.curatedmag.com/news/2010/10/19/the-artistic-furniture-of-charles-rohlfs-exhibition-at-the-met/2010-shotbyjake-com-7815/
Counter Space: Design and the Modern Kitchen
“Counter Space: Design and the Modern Kitchen” is currently on exhibit now through March 14, 2011 at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. The New York Times interviews the show’s curator, Juliet Kinchin.
For further reading:
National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition’s story.
Left: Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky. Frankfurt Kitchen from the Höhenblick Housing Estate, Frankfurt, Germany (reconstruction). 1926–27.
Source: http://www.moma.org/images/dynamic_content/exhibition_page/40200.jpg?1273781855
Gustav Stickley and the American Arts and Crafts Movement
Organized by the Dallas Museum of Art and on exhibition now at the Newark Museum in Newark, New Jersey through January 2, 2011, “Gustav Stickley and the American Arts and Crafts Movement” is the first nationally touring exhibition to focus on the work of this leading figure of the American Arts and Crafts Movement.
Gustav Stickley, Sideboard (1902).
From Dan Bischoff’s Review in The Star-Ledger:
“Gustav Stickley built houses as if they were furniture and designed furniture as if it were architecture.” MORE
Charles and Ray Eames Videos
Charles and Ray Eames introduce their iconic lounge chair in this 1956 NBC broadcast moderated by Arlene Francis.
See more of Charles and Ray Eames’ iconic chairs designed for Herman Miller at the exhibition, “Good Design: Stories from Herman Miller” at the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse, New York, now through October 17, 2010. Read the dd20Century review.
If you’re going to be in the Central New York area on October 12, 2011, there will be a free presentation hosted by the Everson Museum. Dr. Robert Blaich, Herman Miller’s former Vice President of Corporate Design & Communications and co-author of Product Design and Corporate Strategy: Managing the Connection for Competitive Advantage will relate his experiences at the furniture company. More details.
Related videos:
Split screen comparison of two Eames chair assemblies. Film montages were directed by Charles Eames.
Silly Saturday: Round and Round
Originally posted on Curated, tell me this video doesn’t make you laugh. Thomas Heatherwick’s “Spun” seats are made by Magis to celebrate the opening of London Design Week, September 18-26, 2010.
George Nelson
This 2008 video documents George Nelson’s centennial celebration exhibition at the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein, Germany. Curator Jochen Eisenbrand talks about Nelson’s contributions to American design in the Twentieth Century.
Several of Nelson’s ground-breaking designs for Herman Miller can be viewed now through October 17, 2010 at the exhibition “Good Design: Stories from Herman Miller” at the Everson Museum in Syracuse, New York. Read the dd20Century review.
Review: “Good Design: Stories from Herman Miller” Everson Museum, Syracuse, NY
I recently attended the current exhibition at the Everson Museum of Art here in Syracuse New York: “Good Design: Stories from Herman Miller.” Originating from the Muskegon Museum of Art in Muskegon, MI, the exhibit was inspired by a 2004 book by John A. Berry, Herman Miller: the Purpose of Design. According to the museum’s executive director, Judith A. Heyner, the show focuses “on case studies that explore design problems and solutions created by some of the talented artists who have created masterpieces of modern design for the company, and continue to do so today.”
Installation of the exhibition at the Muskegon Museum of Art (Aug 2009).
Source: http://www.hermanmiller.com/discover/wp-content/uploads/4.jpg
I was certain I would see the iconic furniture of designers Ray and Charles Eames, Gilbert Rohde, and George Nelson among others, but where did the “good stories” fit in? How can an art exhibit tell “stories,” especially the complex story of how one furniture company changed the workplace through its innovative design process?
At the Everson, the exhibit is presented in two galleries. The first concentrates on the history of the Herman Miller Company and its founder D.J. De Pree, who was active in the firm until his death at age 99 in 1990. The iconic works of the company’s legendary designers Gilbert Rohde, George Nelson, and Charles and Ray Eames are highlighted here, including Nelson’s typewriter desk and the Eames’ plywood chairs.
Charles and Ray Eames (1945), Lounge Chair Wood.
Source: http://eameschairs.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/eames_plywood_chair.jpg
The second gallery features four case studies, each illustrated through attractive, colorful graphic storyboards that also serve as dividers separating each section. This aspect of the exhibition design relates to Herman Miller’s Action Office, the revolutionary system of panels and furniture that addressed the use of space in modern office buildings where steel frameworks allowed for more expansive spaces. The Action Office gave rise to what we now refer to as “office cubicles.”
Greene and Greene Furniture: Poems of Wood and Light
David Mathias’s book on the furniture of architects Charles and Henry Greene will be released in September. You can pre-order it now on the Wood and Light Web site. While you’re there check out his blog and other great Greene and Greene related resources.
