Design History

The Art of Clairtone: The Making of a Design Icon, 1958-1971

A fully illustrated, stylish look back at the story behind a Canadian design icon.

For a decade, in the 1960s, Clairtone Sound Corporation captured the spirit of the times: sophisticated, cosmopolitan, liberated. From its modern oiled-walnut and teak stereos to its minimalist logos and promotional materials, Clairtone produced a powerful and enduring body of design work.

American Design Ethic: A History of Industrial Design

What is uniquely American about American design? This first history of American products and the philosophy behind their design, use, and manufacture points to the process - the interaction between industrial technology and culture - that gave form to an American "ethic" in material products and helped shape the life style of its citizens.

100 Designs/100 Years—Innovative Designs of the 20th Century

A fascinating insight into the designs that shaped the last century, this at-a-glance guide takes us through a chronologically organized 100-year progression of the world's most influential designs. The author has selected a classic piece of industrial or applied design for each year of the century. He discusses the origin of each design and explains why it was a classic of its time, citing key cultural, social, and political events that place each of the designs in an historical context.

Design Revolution: 100 Products that Empower People

In January 2008, with a thousand dollars, a laptop and an outsized conviction that design can change the world, rising San Francisco-based product designer and activist Emily Pilloton launched Project H Design, a radical non-profit that supports, inspires and delivers life-improving humanitarian product design. "We need to go beyond 'going green' and to enlist a new generation of design activists," she wrote in an influential manifesto. "We need big hearts, bigger business sense and the bravery to take action now."

Art Deco Aluminum: Kensington

In 1934 Alcoa introduced a revolutionary new line of aluminum alloy giftware and domestic items designed by American pioneer industrial designer Lurelle Guild. Called Kensington Ware, these relatively expensive, slick, machine-age objects were in an unmistakenly Art Deco style with cast brass accents. They represent an important American contribution to modern design and decorative arts. The Kensington plant ceased production around 1970, and collectors have recently been scooping up these compelling objects in the antique and collectible markets.

300 Years of Industrial Design

In this endlessly fascinating record of three centuries of industrial design, vivid descriptions of such epoch-defining innovations as the cotton mill, light bulb, and computer are followed by a series of lavishly illustrated case studies of landmark designs, many of which have endured almost unchanged for generations. Grouped chronologically within four materials categories-wood, glass, metal, and ceramics-the products featured include the classic tea pot, milk bottle, garden basket, Windsor chair, outdoor thermometer, and numerous others.

Women Designers in the USA, 1900-2000: Diversity and Difference

A celebration of the many contributions of women designers to 20th-century American culture. Encompassing work in fields ranging from textiles and ceramics to furniture and fashion, it features the achievements of women of various ethnic and cultural groups, including both famous designers (Ray Eames, Florence Knoll and Donna Karan) and their less well-known sisters.

The Work of Charles and Ray Eames: A Legacy of Invention

The Los Angeles-based husband-and-wife team of Charles and Ray Eames gave shape to the look of America's twentieth century. They witnessed firsthand many of the momentous historical events of the 1900s - including the Depression and World War II - and in their lives and work they represented the era's defining social movements: the shift of the nation's attention from the East Coast to the West Coast, the rise of corporate and industrial America, the global expansion of American culture.

American Design in the Twentieth Century: Personality and Performance

In this first study of American design covering the period from 1900 to 1997, Greg Votolato presents the intricate story of how design evolved as a profession and a leisure activity. He demonstrates that design in affluent American culture is as much about personalization of the material world as it is about the performance and appearance of manufactured goods. This is a valuable introduction to the subject for all people interested in design.
 

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