Each year Cooper-Hewitt honors the best and brightest designers at the National Design Awards Gala. The awards are given out in a number of categories including fashion design, architecture design, and product design. This year we invite you to nominate who should be honored at the 2008 National Design Awards. Participate online at http://nominate.cooperhewitt.org. Also,...

Nutrition in Bolivia Positive Deviance Study In this growing area of design innovations are evident in numerous forms. Not limited to current technologies these designers sample from current, emerging and out-moded technologies to provide low cost effective solutions to benefit the poor and marginalized. Working across disciplines and sectors they partner in innovative ways. They...

Several weeks ago while in the exhibition speaking to two museum directors I found myself pulled away by two engaged visitors. Ruth Yoffe, a product/retail/branding designer, and Elisabeth M de Morentin who is a recent graduate of the Illinois Institute of Technology overheard my conversation with the two directors and wanted to discuss their insights...

Here’s another blog that just became a book: Michael Bierut’s new collection of essays, Seventy-Nine Short Essays on Design, published by Princeton Architectural Press. Sixty-eight of those essays first appeared on Design Observer, the blog that Bierut edits with Wiliam Drenttel, Jessica Helfand, and contributors. Bierut has started a conversation at Design Observer about why...

Over the last three years, I have been seeing more convergence between various design disciplines. ReadyMade, Make, and Howtoons are using graphic design to communicate new do-it-yourself design philosophies. Companies like Blik are creating products that are graphics (and graphics that are products). Designers are producing tools and materials as well as end products. Casey...