Not every chair immediately presents itself as a chair. Pared down to its basic components, this chair is a study in outline and form. It was part of design firm nendo’s first solo exhibition in England, at the Saatchi Gallery in 2010. Responding to the exhibition theme, “Outlines”, nendo created the Thin Black Lines series of...
Persistent advancements in materials and technologies, based increasingly on science as well as on the imagination of individuals, has produced a large body of work defined as contemporary design. Much of it has to do with the way things are made, often using new processes. We have mastered assembly-line mass production as exemplified by such...
A version of the Heatwave Radiator is included in the exhibition Joris Laarman Lab: Design in the Digital Age, on view at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum through January 15, 2018. Radiators have long been used to exchange heat, transfering thermal energy from one medium to another for the purpose of space heating. Their primary...
Warm, yellow light bathes a hemisphere of delicately molded plaster flowers, spindly tendrils and leaves. Shadows deepen the foliate reliefs, a luminous dome suspended above the ground. All the elements of an ornate plasterwork ceiling are compressed into a compact sphere. Marcel Wanders’ Skygarden hanging lamp relies upon the unquestioned unity of stylistic opposites: completely...
Design Miami/ is always a stunning collection of modern and contemporary design under one roof, but can be a bit overwhelming without knowing where to look. I led tours of the fair (the Museum’s second tour collaboration with DM/) to provide insight into this year’s highlights, connecting the works on view and illuminating themes. Honestly,...
Tableware as Sensorial Stimuli. (Image credit: Jinhyun Jeon, http://jjhyun.com/?portfolio=tableware-as-sensorial-stimuli-2) Over the past few months, a number of design and food trends have been catching my attention. One is the idea of slowing down, inherent in the work of many student design projects I’ve recently seen. Afterall, what can (hopefully) inspire us to slow down more...
It is easy to miss the highlights when you don’t know where to look. At Design Miami/ 2012, there were many, and the guided tours I led sought to help visitors navigate the fair by taking a deep dive into the content, illuminating themes and historical continuity in the contemporary work. What follow are five...
Tour Eiffel Lamp. Designed by Studio Job, 2012. Carpenters Workshop Gallery. (Image from http://art.sy/artwork/studio-job-tour-eiffel-lamp.) The work of Dutch design firm Studio Job is at once humorous, witty, and ironic, heavy on ornament and always well-crafted. Without fail, I am intrigued to see what they come up with next as an expression of contemporary decorative arts. At...
Biccio fillet, part of the Faked Meat series by Marije Vogelzang on view at the Food Culture exhibition. Design and food continues to be an area of design practice garnering attention as it pushes at the boundaries of what we think of as traditional design. (Full discloser, I am organizing an exhibition on the subject.) Case...
Float. Designed by Snarkitecture, 2012. Volume Gallery. As a curator focused on contemporary design, one of the things I seek out is trends. At this year’s Design Miami/, opening December 5th, one of many trends I’m already spotting is the unexpected. Designers are challenging our eye, whether through their material choices, forms, or program, confounding...
Can you explain a little bit about the type of work you do here at Cooper-Hewitt? As Senior Curator of Contemporary Design, I organize exhibitions and contribute to the museum's publications and public programs. Sometimes I come up with ideas for new exhibitions, and sometimes I'm asked to work with a team of other curators...
M25 Luncheon. (Image credit: The Back Room by Faye Toogood.) The London Design Festival has since passed (it was held September 14 – 23, 2012), but one trend has held my attention: the design and food pop-up. This is by no means a new phenomenon at international contemporary design festivals, but it continues to be...
(Reversed Volumes. Image credit: Mischer'Traxler, http://www.mischertraxler.com/projects_reversed_volumes.html) Welcome to the Design and Food journal! In this Research-in-Progress blog series, I’ll be testing ideas and sharing what piques my interest around design and food, part of early ongoing research I’m undertaking here at Cooper-Hewitt in preparation for an exhibition. I view this space as an important part of...
Anab Jain, founding partner of Superflux, discusses the influence of fantastical beliefs on her work, the structure of her business, and the designer's shifting role in 21st century "architectures of collaboration."
DesignBoost NYC was a two-day design conference held at Cooper-Hewitt in June 2011. Thirteen speakers specializing in everything from biomechanics to filmmaking addressed the conference’s theme, “Design Beyond Design” in this series of short talks.
