One thing that has always stuck out to me is the way in which small physical representations have the power to spread ideas through society. Therefore, of course, I was drawn to the Cooper Hewitt’s model and prototype gallery, where I first encountered this striking piece. Architecture has always been a driving force in society,...
This beautiful birdcage comprised of glass, brass and plexiglass was designed by Charles Lin Tissot. Although best known for his domestic glassware designed for Steuben, this birdcage from the Glass Gardens collection is an escape to a realm of fantasy. This birdcage was produced during the years that Tissot collaborated with the Venini glassworks in...
After nearly sixty years of inactivity, the kilns at Jingdezhen were restored by the Kangxi emperor around 1680. Considered to be one of the greatest Chinese emperors for the progress in the natural sciences and the arts China made under his rule, the Kangxi emperor reigned from 1662 to 1722. During this time, the Jingdezhen...
This delicately hand-sculpted vase might look as though it washed onto the beach, together with a treasure trove of seashells and corals; yet, it emerged from the studio of Sandra Davolio, a designer and ceramicist who lives and works in Denmark. The vase is made of frit porcelain, which is usually composed of crushed quartz,...
Having grown up with the “space race” as a national preoccupation for so many years – which provided not only a stage for scientific exploration but also for some the twentieth century’s most notable technological developments – I find it hard to believe that the Space Shuttle just completed its 130th and final mission. As...
Lots of designers are using video simulations or video prototypes to develop ideas that aren't yet possible. Some of the most fun ideas imagine a digital world in which our hardware devices shrink, dissolve, or vanish altogether. This animation from Keiichi Matsuda shows a futuristic lifestyle full of data but devoid of devices. According to...
Two significant tools for American designers seeking to make their design process more sustainable have recently been announced. The first tool, which hopefully will have broad and positive implications for manufacturers of outdoor industry goods, is Eco-Index . Basically an assessment tool which evaluates a product’s environmental impact, Eco-Index allows manufacturers to measure six...
Design for the Other 90% opened in Washington, DC on April 28, 2010 at the National Geographic Museum’s 17th Street galleries, through September 6, 2010. Admission is free. Photo: Megan Seldon, National Geographic Society, 2010 Alan Parente (left) and Rich McWalters of the National Geographic Museum install the Solar Home Lighting System, one of the...
The poster on the fence outside the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum showed a photograph of the Tata Nano with the caption “actual size.” That didn’t mean that it was easy to install for display in the museum, as you can see from this little movie (filmed by our media makers Shamus Adams and Alex Tibbets)....
On February 16th the smiling Tata Nano rolled through the front doors of Cooper-Hewitt, up the stairs and settled on a platform in the Great Hall. Unveiled last year in India by Tata Motors, India’s largest automobile manufacturer, the Tata Nano is targeted to families who had not previously been able to afford a car....
Personally, I am partial to Richard Meier’s approach to architecture. According to Meier, a building is an act of “willful artificiality;” a “man-made” spatial construct that functions as a receptacle for experiencing the world of nature. Meier’s white walls act as nature’s film screen capturing ever-changing patterns of reflected color and light. While Meier credits...
On March 3, Cooper-Hewitt’s Members (Contributing level and above) joined the private opening of west elm’s newest location on the upper west side. Event designer extraordinaire David Stark created one-of-a-kind furniture and objects from recycled west elm packing materials and catalogs. Items were auctioned to benefit Cooper-Hewitt, and remain on display in the store throughout...
Last spring, the New York City Department of Transportation, in partnership with Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, requested proposals for functional, innovative bike rack designs that would raise the profile of cycling as both a convenient and eco-friendly mode of transportation in New York City. The jury received over 200 entries from architects, artists, engineers, landscape...
Design for the Other 90% reopens at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 24 and will be there right through the summer until September 7, 2008. The design solutions will be displayed within several second generation larger Global Village Shelters in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, one of the largest urban sculpture parks...
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...
