George Nelson: The Design of Modern Design Stanley Abercrombie foreword by Ettore Sottsass, Jr. appendixes comp il ed by Judith Nasatir The MIT Press Cambridge, Massachusetts London, England
George Nelson: The Design of Modern Design
Stanley Abercrombie
foreword by Ettore Sottsass, Jr.
appendixes compiled by Judith Nasatir
The MIT Press
Cambridge, Massachusetts
London, England
Venturi, Robert, 34
Versus exhibition, New Yo rk, 23
Victor Emmanuel Ill, 10
Wachsmann, Konrad, 76-77
Wagenfeld, Wilhelm, 38
Warnecke, John Carl, & Associates, 220
Weese, Harry, 90
Welton Becket & Associates, 162, 164, 170
Whit ehead, Alfred North, 136
Whitman, Wait, 20
Whitney, Charles, 57
Wilder, Billy, 163, 173
Williamsburg Info rmat ion Center. See Co-
lonia l Williamsburg
Wirkkala, Tapio, 38, 181
Wolf, Henry, 58
Woman's Medical Clinic, Lafayette, Indi-
ana,2 16
Workplace, theory of , 228--229, 233
Works Progress Administration, U.S., 15
Wormley, Edward, 90, 101
Wright, Fran k Lloyd, 3,16-20,32- 33,38,
54,57,65, 68,72,128--133,185,190,
235
Wright , Henry (Jr.), 17,67-68, 185
Wright, Henry (Sr.), 185
Wright, Olgivanna, 17
Wright, Russel. 15, 50, 83
W urman, Richard Saul, 58
Yale University, 2- 6,142,152
Yamasaki, Minoru, 30, 74, 80, 167,231
lanuso, Marco, 181
l ion & Breen, 167, 220
lion, Robert, 167
Zucker, Paul. 30--32
Index 353
Contents
Foreword by Ettore Sottsass, Jr. vii
Acknowledgments XI
A Personal Preface xv
1 Preparing for an Unknown Career
2 A New Cause: Modern Architecture 23
3 A New Profession: Industrial Design 49
4 The House 67
5 Furniture for the House 83
6 Education 141
7 Exhibitions 151
8 The City 185
9 The Office 207
10 Some Common Themes 233
Appendixes
Biographical Chronology 243
Chronology of Work 247
Awards and Honors 267
Writings by Nelson 271
Writings about Nelson and His Firms 283
Notes 299
Index 347
LLRC , ~CAST
Index
Bold numbers refer to pages on which
figures appea r.
Aalto, Alvar, 12,90,101, 103, 107
Ackerson. Einour, 58
Acti on Office, 211 - 216, 212, 214, 215
Act ion Office Two, 219- 220
Adams & Prent ice. 4
Aid Association for Lutherans interiors,
App leton, Wisconsin, 220-226
Albers, Joseph. 23, 55
Albinson, Don. 77
Alien. Deborah, 58
Alien. George V., 154
Alien, Terry, 211
Aluminum Extrusions, Inc., 119- 120
American Academy, Rome (see also Rome
Prize), 8, 9, 7, 10, plate
American Express logo, plate
American Institute of Architects, 20, 75,
101
American Institute of Graphic Arts. 191
American Inst itute of Interior Designers.
213
American National Exh ibition, Moscow, 77,
80, 159-176. 187,207, 166, 168, 169,
171 , 172,174, 17S,plate
American Radiator Co., 75
American Revolution Bicentennial exhibi
tion, 179
Ansul Chemical factory, 77
Architectural Forum, 9, 15-17, 19- 20, 68,
70,77,84,92,151,186-187
Archit ectural league of New York, 23, 91,
152, 155
Architectural Record, 77
Architecture, 4
Armour Institute, 23
Arp, Hans, 28
Art Digest, 52
Artek, Ltd .• 107
Arts & Decoration. 67
Art X presentation, 141- 149, 163, 202, 146
Aspen design conference, 54-56, 190, 57,
58
Atherton. John, 154
Atoms for Peace exhibition, 159, 161
Auerbach, A lfred, 91, 96, 101
Bardagy, Joan, 58
Bayer, Herbert, 23, 55, 154, 159, 156
BecVar, Arthur. 72
8aldwin, Ben, 90
Ball Clock. 103. 111, 115, 179. 114
Barrett Specification Roofs, 77
Barrett. WHliam, 59
Barringer, Richard, 154
Bass. Sau l, 58
Bauhaus, 3. 75
8aum, Joe. 220
8eaudouin, Eugene, 11
Beckman, Rona ld, 211. 218
Behrens, Peter. 15
Beinart, Julian, 58
Bel Geddes, Norman. 23, 50, 83, 176
Belluschi, Pietro, 80
Benedict, Fitz, 34
Bernstein, Elmer, 167
Serto ia. Harry, 90
Black Mountain College, 23
Blaich, Robert, 219
Blake & Neski, 167
Slake, Peter, 56, 60, 154, 167, 170,187, 189
Bonniers shop, New York, 117
Born, Ernest, 15
Brasi lia, 193
Breuer, Ma rceJ, 23, 68, 75-76, 93- 96
Brooklyn M useum, 154
Brown, Denise Scott, 234
Bubble Lamp, 117-119, 179, 118, 120
Bunshaft, Gordon, 24, 38, 209
Business Week, 213
Cabin, Betty, 141
Cage, John, 235
"Camera Three" (television program), 60
Caplan, Ralph , 20, 210, 58
Carvel Co., 128
Catenary Group furn iture, 133, 134, 135
Cathol ic Univers ity, 6
Chadwick, Gordon, 34, 67, 159, 176, 35, 36,
37, plate
Chapman, Dave, 55
Chermayeff, Ivan, 185, 58
Chermayeff, Serge, 99
Chrysler exh ibition, New York World's Fair
(1964),176-179, 177, 178, 179,plate
Civilized City, plate
Clock designs, 112, 113, 114
Coconut Chair, 128, 169, plate
Colonial Williamsburg, 154, 159, 156, 157,
158
Columbia University, 28-30, 142
Comprehensive Panel 5ystem, 216
Comprehensive 5torag e System, 207, 216,
126
Conant Ball Co., 83
Cooseil 5uperieur de la Creat ion Esthe
tique Industrielle, 191
Constantine, MHdred, 167, 191, 197
Continuing Education ( enter, Athens,
Georg ia, 147
Cooper-Hewitt Museum, 199- 200, 201
"Countdown" (slide show), 204, p late
Cranbrook Academy of Art, 90
Creative Playthings logo, plate
Crosby,Theo,43,220
De Bure, Gilles, 201
De Pree, Dirk Jan, 33, 55, 83-86, 88, 91, 96-
97,107, 136-138,210, 237- 238, 137,
139
De Pree, Hugh, 210, 228
De Pree, Max, 11 9, 128, 228
Index
Design, 207
Design Issues, 181
Design Since 1945 exh ibition, Philadelphia,
179- 181 , 180, 183
Desi gn Today in Europe and Ameri ca exh i-
bit ion, New Delhi, 176
Deskey, Donald, 50, 52
d' Harnoncourt, Rene, 55
Diffrient, Niels, 181 , 58
Dixon, John Morris, 13
Dobl]n, Jay, 59
Oodd, Lamar, 141- 142, 144---147
Oohner, Donald, 50-51
Drexel furn iture company, 101
Drexler, Arthur, 56--57, 59, 80, 110
Dreyfuss, Henry, 23, 50, 191
Du, 62
Dunbar furn itu re company, 101
Dunbar, Jack, 34
Dunlap, William E., 11 9- 128
Ounlap house, Charlotte, Michigan, 129
Dymaxion Corp., 9
Eames, Charles, 20, 21, 44, 55, 59, 80, 90-
92, 99,101 , 103, 107, 110, 142- 148,
154, 163,165, 167, 177, 181 , 191,230,
139, 169, 174
Eames Memorial Lecture, 205, 230
Eames, Ray, 90, 103, 173, 139
Eckerstrom. John, 58
Eng le, Dolores, 125, 128
Eppinger, Jim, 84---85, 91 , 138
Erv;n, Don, 154, 165
Esherick, Joseph, 68
Esquire, 213
Evans, Joan, 211
Evans Products Co., 90-9 1
Everbrite Electric logo, plate
Execut ive Office Group, 207, 208
Exhib ition for Modern Living, Detro it, 103,
105,1 04
Experimenta l House, 77-80, 216, 78, 79
Fa irchi ld house, New York, 24---28, 67, 24,
25, 26 , 27
Fairchild, Sherman, 24
348
Fallion, Dtto, 4
Farmer, Ernest, 92, 99, 107,208
Farson, Richard, 58
Federal Reserve 8ank interiors, New York,
216,217
Fehlbaum, RoJf, 203
Florence dinnerware, 179
Foote, Nelson, 64
Forbes, 51
Fordyce & Hamby, 23
Fortune, 17, 27, 49, 51- 54, 67, 72, 86, 88,
92-93, 197 Fromm, Erich, 59, 143,191,230,237
Frykholm, Stephen, 96
Frost, Carl, 211
Fu ller, R. Buckminster, 4, 33, 55, 75-76, 80,
108--116,141,148,152,163- 164,173,
190,200,230,235,237,109,168
Ga lbraith, John Kenneth , 176
Gans, Herbert, 181
Gartner & Bender, 152, 154
Gateleg Table, 97
Geddes, Patrick, 185
Genera l Electric, 72- 75, 73
Gensler, Arthur, 228
George, PhiHp, 141, 154, 170
Gill, Eric, 32
Girard, Alexander, 103- 106, 143- 146, 148,
154,139 Girard, Susan, 103
Glaser, Milton, 56, 58
Golden Gate Internat ional Exhibition, San
Francisco, 17
Good Design exhibitions, New York and
Chicago, 154
Goodman, Paul, 138
Goody, Joan, 43
Graham, John, 187
Grass on Main Street proposal, 186--188
Graves, Michael, 29, 34, 43
Gropius, Waiter, 3, 11, 38, 68, 75- 77, 143
Grotz, PaU l, 16-17, 68
Gruen, Victor, 187
Gueft, Dlga, 72
Guild, Lurelle, SO-51
Index
Gump, Richard, 55
Gutkind, E. A., 188
Ha ll, Edward, 211
Halpert, Edith, 173
Hamby & Nelson, 24-28
Hamby, WilHam, 24, 67
Hardware designs, 98
Harnden, Peter, 154
Harper, Irving, 92, 96, 99, 107, 111, 159,
102
Harrison, WalJace, 209
Harvard Graduate School of Design, 23,43,
75 Hauserman Co., 216
Heany, Jack, 169
Hedrich+Blessing, 17, 68
Helweg-MoeHer, Bent, 11
Herman Miller Furn iture Co., 33- 34, 47,
50,77,83- 88,91-105,128-139,190,
207,211- 220,228,37,87,94-95,97-
98,100,102,104,130-131 , 134- 135,
169 Herman Miller Research Corp ., 210
Hernmarck, Helena, 226
HewJett, lames Monroe, 9
Heyer, Pau l, 38
Hiesinger, Kathryn, 179, 181
Hine, Thomas, 111, 179
Hitchcock, Henry-RusseJl, 11
Holden & McLaughlin, 75
Holiday, 189, 192
HoHein, Hans, 200
House Beautiful, 19, 93
House on Poles, 207
Howard, Ebenezer, 185
Howard Miller Clock Co., 117, 112-114,
118,121
Howard, Thomas c., 115
Howe & Lescaze, 209
Howland, Will iam 5., 147
Huxtable, Ada Lou ise, 57
Industrial Design, 60, 64, 77,176,213
Industrial Design USA exhibit io n, Moscow,
179
349
Industrialized housing, 74-81
Interior Design, 234
Interiors, 33, 38, 56--57, 59,72,93,197,218
International Competition for low-Cost
Furniture Design, 101
Internat ional Design Conference, Aspen .
See Aspen design conference
Isozaki, Arata, 200
Jacobsen, Arne, 181
Jacobsen, Egbert, 55
lames, Gamble & Rogers, 4
Jeanneret, Pierre, 93
Jensen, Gustav, 50
Jerusalem Museum, 179
Johnson, O. R., house, Amagansett, N.Y.,
37
lohnson, Phil ip, 11, 28, 68, 116, 177
Johnson, Sidney, house, East Hampton,
N.Y., plate
Juhl, Finn, 154
Jung , Carl, 234
Kafka, Franz, 2, 139
Kahn, Albert, 15- 16, 116
Kahn, louis, 55 Kann, Henry Robert, 123
Katavalos, Willi am, 154
Kaufmann, Edgar, jr., 17, 55, 67, 101, 103,
154,191
Ketchum, Morris, 187
Kierkegaard, 5"Jren, 2
Kiesler, Frederick J., 141
Kirkpatrick house, Kalamazoo, Michigan,
31
Kitchen design, 72- 74
Knapp, John, 128
Knobel, lance, 207
Knoll, Florence, 90, 103
Knoll furniture company, 101, 107
Knoll, Hans, 101
Knopf, Alfred A., 55
Koch, Carl, 68, 76---77, 80, 164
Koch & Lowy, 135
Kratka, Charles, 107
Khrushchev, Nikita, 173, 176
Index
l-Shaped Desk, 207,209
lacha ise, Gaston, 170, 171
Lacy, Bill, 49, 218, 58
La Fonda del Sol restaurant, New York,
107
la liberte, Norman, banners by, plate
lambert, Eleanor, 167
La Potagerie restaurant, New York, 38
larsen, Jack lenor, 105
laszlo, Paul, 99,107
latham, Richard, 38, 59, 197
Latham-Tyler-Jensen,197
Laverne furn iture company, 105
Le Corbusier, 3, 9- 11, 13- 14, 75, 93, 185,
20.
lee, Richard, 189
Lee, Tom, 167
Lescaze, William, 24, 27
l'Etoile restaurant, New York, 107
Levine, Jack, 173
Liebes, Oorothy, 105
Ufe, 19,70,72,152
Lionni, Leo, SS
Lippold, Richard, 191
Loewy, Raymond, 38, 50, 52, 116, 154
Luce, Henry, 17, 19
luckhardt, Hans and Vassifi, 11, 13, 75
Luckman, Charles, 177
Lustig, Alvin, 57, 105
MacOowell, Edward, 1, 9
MAN transFORMS exhibition, New York,
200 Marcus, Stanley, ss Marshmallow Sofa, 128, 130, plate
Marsh, Reg inald, 154
Masey, Jack, 162-163, 167, 170
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 99
Mathsson, Bruno, t03
McAusland, Randolph, 64
McClellan , Harold Chadick, 162, 170
McGrath , Raymond, 11
McKim, Charles Fallen, 8
McKim, Mead & Wh ite, 8
Mechanized Storage Unit, 72, 73
Meeks, Everett Victor, 3
350
Meier. Richard. 34, 200
Meikle. Jeffrey l., 181
Mendelsohn. Eric. 83
Merchandise Mart, Chicago. 1 S4
Metropolitan Museu m of Art. New York.
51
Mies van der Rohe. ludwig. 3. 10- 11. 75.
101.107
Miller, Herman. See Herman Miller Furni
ture Co.
Miller. Howard. See Howard Miller Clock
Co.
Mind lin, Henrique . 195
Misfits, The, graphics for, plate
Moholy-Nagy.lasz lo. 23, 202
Morgue, Olivier. 181
Moscow exhibition . See American National
Exhibition
Motherwell. Robert. 191
Mount. Charles Morr is. 38
Mumford, lewis. 185
Museum of Modern Art, New York, 11- 12.
23. 51,67,80. 90, 101 , 115-116. 154.
167.176,188
Myers, Howard, 9, 16
Nelson & Chadwick. 34, 74. 31 . 35-37,
plate
Nelson & Hamby. 72
Nelson. Frances. 15
Nelson, Jacquellne. 170. 57
Nelson. LiBian Cantarow. 1
Nelson, Mico, 63, 57
Nelson, Norbert, 1
Nelson, 5imeon. 1
Nelson Workspaces, 220- 227.221-223.
225, 227
Nessen Lighting, 132
Neutra, Richard. 15. 68. 191
New Bauhaus. Chicago, 23
New York Times. 68. 119, 154. 165. 181
New York World's Fair (1939). 23. 151- 152
New York World's Fa ir (1964). 176-179
New Yorker, 27
Nixon, Richard M .. 176
Noguchi. Isamu, 85, 92, 99. 103
Noyes, Eliot. 49, 67.173
Index
Omni System. 207, 124
Organic Design in Home Furnishings exhi ·
bitio n, New York. 90
Ortega y Gasset. Jose, 2, 138--139. 203. 235
Pacific Design Center, Los Angeles. 228
Pad office system project. 226-228
Paepcke, Waiter, 55
Papanek. Victor. 181
Paris Prize, 6, 8
Paul, Bruno, 93
Pedersen. Wil1iam. 220
Pencil Points, 4, 9- 15, 75
Penguin Dictionary of Decorative Arts. 72
Philadelphia Inquirer. 179
Ph iladel ph ia Museum of Art, 179-181
Photography. 20-21, plates
Piacent in i, Marcello, 11. 12
Pierce Foundation, 75
Pile, Joh n, 115. 159
Ponti, Gio. 11
Pratt. Tom, 228. 230
Pravda, 173
Pretzel Chair. 128, plate
Prolon dinnerware. 61
Pro-Phy-Lac-Tic Brush Co., 61
Propst, Robert, 210-211. 213. 228, 139
Progressive Architecture. 4. 13
Pullman, (h ristopher. 60
PUshkarev, 80ris, 64
Quickborner Team, 210
Rams, Dieter, 181
Rand. Paul, 92
Rapson. Ra lph. 90
Reconstruction Finance Corp .. U.5., 76
Revere Copper & Brass (0., 186
Risom. Jens. 90, 103
Roberts. Jack, 58
Robertson. Jaqu elin. 58
Robsjohn-Gibbings. T. H .. 90
Rohde. Gilbert. 15,83.92-93,207
Rome Prize (see also American Academy),
6-9, 185. 7
Roosevelt Memorial competition, 34
Rosenthal Ch ina offices. Bavaria, 218
351
Rosenthal, Ph ilip, 218
Rosenthal Studio~Haus, New York, 38, 39-
42
Rovirosa, (onsuela, 58
Royal Society of Arts, London, 191
Rudofsky, Bernard, 57, 116
Rudolph , Paul , 154
Ruskin, John, 185
Saarinen, Aline, 165
Saarinen, Eero, 15,90, 10 1, 103, 117, 165
Saarinen, Eliel, 176
Sargeant, Winthrop, 19
Sakier, George, 50-51
Sanders, Morris, 93
Sao Pau lo biennial exhibit ion, 159, 162,
160
Saturday Evening Post, 186, 213
Saturday Review, 193
Scarab fratern ity, 17
Schiffer Prints, 105, 155
Schnel1e, Eberhard and Wolfgang, 210
Schroeder, Francis deN., 57
Schwartz, Joe, 219 , 228
Scot! Paper logo, pla te
Scurly, Vincent, 177-179
Sears, Roebuck & Co., 50,83,93
Sennett, Richard, 237
Shahn, Ben, 154
Shared Office project, 228
Shelter, 9
Skiddablewalls, 218-219
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, 209
Slat Bench, 93, 87, 94-95
Slesin, Suzanne, 181
Sling Sofa, 132, 179, 134
Snow, C. P., 108
Social Security Administration, U.S., 59-60
Soft Wall project, 228
Sottsass, Ettore, Jr., 63,74, 181,200, iv, 201
Spaeth house, Southampton, N.Y., 34, 74,
35-36, plate
Sparke, Penny, 115
Star furniture company, 83
Steinberg, Saul, 103
Steichen, Edward , 167
Index
Stein, Clarence, 185
Steubenville Pottery, 84
St oller, Ezra, 18, 68, 96, 173
Stone, Edward Durrell. 68
Storagewall, 69- 72, 83, 96, 105, 119, 233,
71
Storwal International, 220-227
StrucTube System, 154,207,153
Sullivan, louis, 3
Sumner, Robert, 211
Swaged-Leg Furn iture, 128, 131, plate
Synergetics, Inc., 115
Tabib ian, Jivan, 58
Taylor, Francis Henry, 141
Taylor, Lisa, 201
Teague, Waiter Dorwin, 15, 50-51, 55, 65
Tecton Group, 11
Tengbom, Ivar, 11
Textiles & Objects shop, New York, 105
Thompson, Jane, 56-59, 164,58
Thompson, Jim, 105
Thoreau, Henry David , 235
Track lighting, 34, 37
Travelstead, G. Ware, 220
Tray Table, 106
Treitel-Gratz, 169
Troia development, Portugal, 194-198,
196, 198, pia te
Unistrut display system, 154
United States Information Agency, 154,
plate
Un ited States Pavilion, Osaka, 45 , 46
United States Steel, 75
Un it Kitchen. 74
Un ive rsity of California at Los Angeles, 147
University of Georgia, 141- 149, 163
Un iversity of Michigan, 205
University of Tennessee, 218
U.S.- Us exhibition, New York, 188
Vaccaro, Giuseppe, 11
Van Doren, Harold, 50-51
Vassos, John, 50
Venice, plate
352