Press Room

Members of the press can view information for museum news and events and access the press release archive.
Press materials, including high-resolution images for publication, are available through the password-protected Press Images and Resource Gallery.
Ashley Tickle
Director of Communications & Marketing
Laurie Bohlk
Associate Director of Communications & Marketing
Contact information for media only:
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
Department of Communications & Marketing
2 East 91st Street
New York, NY 10128-0669
Telephone: 212-849-8420
Email: CooperHewittPress@si.edu
September 7, 2022
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum today announced the 23rd class of National Design Award winners, honored for design innovation and impact in nine categories. Established in 2000 as a project of the White House Millennium Council, the National Design Awards bring national recognition to the ways in which design enriches everyday life. Winners are selected by a multidisciplinary jury of practitioners, educators and leaders from a wide range of design fields.
July 27, 2022
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum today announced that Ellen Lupton will receive an honorary designation as curator emerita to celebrate the conclusion of her tenure as senior curator of contemporary design effective July 30. Throughout her 30-year career at Cooper Hewitt, Lupton’s acclaimed exhibitions, lectures and publications have covered every aspect of design—from broad concepts of typography to practical elements of everyday life. The honorary designation celebrates Lupton’s decision to continue exploring and advancing contemporary design matters through her teaching, writing, workshops and lectures.
April 29, 2022
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History and Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum mark Sexual Assault Awareness Month this April by announcing the joint acquisition for the Smithsonian’s permanent collections of the “Vitullo Evidence Collection Kit for Sexual Assault Examination,” the innovation that helped accelerate successful investigation and prosecution of sexual assault in the United States and whose influence continues to this day.
April 13, 2022
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum today announced four appointments to its board of trustees: Jennifer Deason, Paul Leinwand, Natalie Nixon and Ivy Ross.
April 7, 2022
This June, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum will present “Designing Peace,” an exhibition exploring the unique role design can play in pursuing peace. On view from June 10 through Sept. 4, 2023, the exhibition features design projects from around the world that look at ways to create and sustain more durable peaceful interactions—from creative confrontations that challenge existing structures to designs that demand embracing justice and truth in a search for reconciliation.
February 17, 2022
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum has announced the addition of several important works to the permanent collection. The museum holds one of the world’s most diverse design collections—over 215,000 objects that span 30 centuries. Among the current collecting priorities are to add born-digital and sustainability-minded works; bolster the diversity of designers represented; and acquire major historical pieces.
Featured Image: Installation view of "How Posters Work." Photo by Matt Flynn.