GIVE A SHOUT TO WORD UP! wordup@papermag.com
Entries tagged with 'Design'
Posted Jan. 17, 2008,
Scoping out the MoMA Design Store's New Wares
By Meagan Brant
After previewing more than 125 products to be introduced into the MoMA Design Store’s Spring/Summer 2008 stock, my occasional desire for innovative and striking lifestyle accessories has officially evolved into an addiction. With designs from around the world, MoMA Retail has pulled together a collection of items that take the museum’s mission of “educating the public about modern art and good design” beyond the idea of function and aesthetics to promoting designs with a cause -- a response to the increase in customer demands for morally sound products.
Pamela Shaw, a MoMA Design Store buyer told me how the store is putting more of an emphasis on bringing in items that have a whimsical and functional use but are also socially responsible in some way -- like the dual-purpose chalkboard napkin rings and place cards, handcrafted in Germany by physically challenged workers. These reusable rings, which also come with a sate pencil and eraser, have created both opportunities and a design of exquisite craftsmanship.
Some highlights that I saw included the placemats made of recycled magazines and newspapers hand rolled and stitched together in India, and tableware hailing from Japan made of recycled ceramics that were rescued, ground and redesigned into sedimentary style bowls and plates.
Posted Jun. 29, 2007,
Happy 100th Birthday to Charles Eames!
By Ann Magnuson
This year marks the centennial of modernist designer Charles Eames' birth. Together with his wife Ray, the Eames' created some of the most enduring modernist architecture and furniture in the world. This story in Thursday's LA Times celebrates their unique vision, which you can see on display in their own films (Powers of Ten is one of my all-time faves), including the above video.
House is a whimsical document the couple made after five years of living in what is now viewed as one of the most important architectural works of art in southern California (and the world!). Ironically, the Eames' (who celebrated the beauty and artistic merit of everyday objects) were anti-elitist and it's a shame their creations have been fetishized and turned into expensive object d'art for the super-rich and the Design Nazis currently taking over Beverly Boulevard. But how fitting that Charles and Ray Eames have become the legends they deserve to be!