2014 Summer: Goldstein Museum of Design

GOLDSTEIN MUSEUM OF DESIGN SUM M E R 2014

E X H I B ITI O NS

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SPRING 2014 HAPPENINGS DESIGNING THE BEAUTIFULLY USEFUL: A PANEL DISCUSSION ON SCANDINAVIAN MODERN DESIGN APRIL 6

ALIGN: THE EXHIBITION HGA GALLERY In conjunction with the annual Senior Fashion Show, insights into the students’ creative processes were on display from February 4 – May 4.

left to right: panelists Curt Pedersen (American Swedish Institute), Laurann Gilbertson (Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum), Tova Brant (Museum of Danish America), and moderator Curt Lund (University of Minnesota)

DANISH MODERN: DESIGN FOR LIVING OPENING PARTY GALLERY 241, JANUARY 31

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GOLDSTEIN MUSEUM OF DESIGN

CURRENT HAPPENINGS

GALLE

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100 YEARS OF STUDENT DRAWINGS: CELEBRATING THE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE’S CENTENNIAL

SIGNED BY VERA: SCARVES BY AN ICONIC DESIGNER

AMERICAN HUSTLE SCOTCH TASTING

Gallery 241, McNeal Hall

274 McNeal Hall

Northrop Gallery

May 17 – June 29, 2014

June 11, 2014, 6-9pm

April 4 – June 29, 2014

Opening party: Friday, May 16, 6-8pm

(see back cover for details)

(see page 4 for full story)

UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS A RIGHT TO ESTABLISH A HOME HGA Gallery, Rapson Hall August 23, 2014 – January 4, 2015 Opening party: Friday, August 22, 6-8pm

A Right to Establish a Home examines the history behind a series of menacing protests that enveloped 4600 Columbus Avenue South, Minneapolis following the property’s purchase in August 1931 by Arthur and Edith Lee. The young African-American couple chose to buy a house in what many then considered a “white neighborhood”.

The exhibition interprets the protests and responses in the broader context of race and housing in Minneapolis, racism in Minnesota, and the individuals and organizations that defended the Lees, including the NAACP and the distinguished attorney Lena Olive Smith.

A mob of over 4,000 people gathered on the Lee Family’s front lawn on the night of July 15, 1931.

Source: Chatwood Hall, “A Roman Holiday in Minneapolis,” The Crisis (Oct. 1931): 338.

ALEXEY BRODOVITCH: ART DIRECTOR Gallery 241, McNeal Hall September 6 – December 21, 2014 Opening party: Friday, September 5, 6-8pm

Alexey Brodovitch: Art Director celebrates the life and work of one of the most preeminent designers of the last century. Best known for his nearly quarter-century tenure at Harper’s Bazaar (1934-1958), Brodovitch ushered in many of the Modernist innovations that shape what we think of today as contemporary magazine design.

His lasting and far-reaching influence is seen throughout graphic design, advertising, photography, and design education.

This exhibition illustrates Brodovitch’s work as an art director and graphic designer through artifacts from the Goldstein Museum of Design and University Libraries collections. Highlights include rare copies of Brodovitch’s magazines, books, and design journals such as the short-lived but revolutionary Portfolio (1950-51).

IN THE WORKS SUMMER 2014

Spring 2015 Summer 2015 Fall 2015

July 1948

Design Cycles: The Bike Show // Nature 3.X GMD New Acquisitions America’s Superheros, Villains, and Monsters: Our Toys

October 1947

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Hypernatural 3

May 17 – June 29, 2014 Gallery 241, McNeal Hall Opening Party: Friday, May 16, 6-8pm

ADRIAN, CHANEL, DIOR, PRADA, VALENTINO… VERA. Though united by the threads of fashion, these design icons stand alone, most respected for the qualities that render them unique. Each is defined by an unmistakable, unforgettable style, a style warranting a solitary name, recognizable to the widest of audiences.

Vera began life in 1907 as Vera Salaff, a nature-loving child with an artistic bent. With the encouragement of her family, she studied art at Cooper Union, transforming her paintings into designs for wallpaper, interior furnishings, and children’s book illustrations. She later attended the Traphagen School of Fashion Design, became Mrs. George Neumann, and developed an entrepreneurial itch. Toiling over a kitchen table in her tiny Manhattan studio apartment, Vera Neumann transformed surplus military parachutes into colorful and bold accessories and herself into “Vera,” the creator of scarves beloved by women the world over.

From such humble beginnings, Vera’s company, Printex, Inc., evolved into a major American business. In just under twenty years, from 1947 to 1966, annual sales grew to 12 million dollars.

By 1977, that number became 100 million. As her business flourished, so did Vera’s ambition.

In addition to her successful line of scarves, she produced table linens, bed linens, posters, kitchen ware, and a line of sportswear. When asked to estimate the total number of designs produced during her lifetime, Vera 4

Both scarves this page: Gift of David Anger and James Broberg

GOLDSTEIN MUSEUM OF DESIGN

EXHIBITION EXHIBITIONS

The painterly qualities of Vera’s designs are captured in this scarf which replicates her brushstrokes.

Gift of David Anger and James Broberg

Vera’s iconic signature was often paired with a ladybug, a symbol she equated with happiness and good fortune.

Gift of Mark Schultz

simply gasped and rolled her eyes. Contemporary estimates suggest she created 130 to 600 unique designs each year. In 2005, nearly 23,000 sample scarves were discovered in Vera’s company archives.

While a number of table settings and garments grace the collection at the Goldstein Museum of Design, the vast majority of our “Veras” – approximately 550 – are scarves. This outstanding array of scarves provides the diverse source material for the new exhibition, Signed by Vera. The scarves were donated by eleven Vera devotees; however, the heart of the exhibition is comprised of the 499 scarves given to GMD by David Anger and James Broberg in 2010.

Part of the appeal of Vera’s work, according to Anger, is the way she makes her artistic presence known in each and every design. Her scarves began as watercolor paintings, which were then deconstructed

This bold geometric design was the first Vera scarf collected

by Anger and Broberg.

and transferred to silk screens. Great care was taken to retain the shape of Vera’s brushstrokes, pooled semi-opaque paint, and, of course, her iconic signature. The painterly and artistic quality of Vera’s scarves inspired the exhibition design. Scarves will line the wall like paintings.

Vibrant color and exuberant pattern will surround visitors, reflecting the happiness and whimsy conveyed by Vera’s designs. ■

by Natasha Thoreson, Exhibition Curator and GMD Collection Assistant EXHIBITION SPONSORS: GUILD Collective LLC, Lula Vintage, Succotash, Tatters Alternative Clothing, Via’s Vintage, and Woman’s Club of Minneapolis

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3 Vera scarves often came in a range of color choices, as seen here. It is difficult to say if this collection is “complete” or if more colorways exist, waiting to be discovered.

1, 2 Gift of David Anger and James Broberg 3 On loan from Lois Markus and Sylvia Mohn

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4, 5 Gift of Judith A. Christensen

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EDUCATING THE NEXT GENERATION OF DESIGNERS INTERIOR DESIGN STUDENTS STUDY DANISH MODERN FURNITURE Each spring, Professor Tasoulla Hadjiyanni brings her History of Interiors and Furnishings students to the Goldstein Museum of Design to study chairs. This year, the Museum of Danish America’s traveling exhibition, Danish Modern: Design for Living provided a rare opportunity for students to examine a more focused selection of chairs. While some items such as the “Round Chair” by Hans Wegner (1949) and the “Orange Knoll Chair”

by Jens Risom (1951) came from GMD’s collection, other examples of iconic Danish design are on loan to the exhibition from private collectors, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, and the Kirkland Museum of Fine and Decorative Arts, among others.

HISTORY OF COSTUME CLASS History of Costume, taught every spring, provides an opportunity for students to work firsthand with objects from the GMD. Professor Marilyn DeLong draws heavily on the collection, emphasizing how important it is to see garments and accessories in person when learning how to identify stylistic eras. GMD’s collection is well suited to this endeavor. Over 360 examples of apparel are shared with students each spring to illustrate many aspects of costume history including trends, gender roles, industry advancements, social movements, and societal norms. Here students pictured are researching objects from 1910 to 1920.

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GOLDSTEIN MUSEUM OF DESIGN

EDUCATION

SLEEVE STUDIO What do the words bishop, leg-of-mutton, and dolman have in common? They are all types of sleeves. Most people give little thought to sleeves, and if they do it is in relation to the basic question of short or long. For apparel design students, sleeves are a critical design consideration. Each year Apparel Design Studio I students visit the Research Center and view collection garments that illustrate an array of sleeve styles spanning many eras. Not only does this inspire students to think broadly about sleeve design, but it also provides insights into fabric choice and construction techniques.

Silk jacket, 1980-89 Bob Macku Gift of Emily Willard

Silk dress and jacket, 1990-99 Chloe Gift of Mary Wangness

Rayon dress, 1933 Gift of Curtiss Oberg

GMD APP CLASS: PHASE TWO Building on the basic components of a design concept developed last semester, the Spring 2014 GMD App Class has been delving deep to create a one-of-a-kind iPad app for the museum. “The app has a clean, modern, accessible design, and the content focuses on the user and their experience,” says co-instructor Camille LeFevre. “That means we’re working to incorporate multiple levels of interactivity into the app that will result in a wide variety of usergenerated content.”

The app prototype will include more than 40 objects from GMD’s collection with which users can interact. Users can engage with selected objects by following prompts that lead to games, information, challenges, timelines, or puzzles. The app also includes a “design lab” in which users can upload, create, and work with their own images, objects, and designs.

“We’ve devised, and are following, four main tenets in the design of the app and creation of content,” LeFevre says. “First, the app is a lab that empowers the user to create, curate and share their findings about GMD and design. Second, the app is a virtual environment for engaging with GMD. Third, the app is a product that extends GMD’s mission and values. Fourth, the app, as an extension of GMD, communicates the value of good design in everyday life.”

The class includes students from journalism, design, English, and art history. Co-taught by designer Zachary Keenan, the course is offered by the School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

SUMMER 2014

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NOTES FROM THE COLLECTION APPLIQUÉ: NORTH, SOUTH, EAST, WEST 2

Despite the fact that appliqué can be thought of as a single technique, there is great variety in work produced across cultures and time.

This colorful appliquéd wall banner (on front cover and 1, at left) is from Benin, a West African country formerly known as the Kingdom of Dahomey. While the objects and creatures depicted have an air of whimsy, they are specific to a succession of kings that ruled the Fon people from the early 1600s through 1896, when the French colonized the region. Typically made by boys and men, the appliquéd figures are recreations of bas-relief carvings on palace walls and entrances. Some of the animals in this banner have sharp teeth, but look docile compared to those depicted in banners made for indigenous people. Historically, Dahomey provided a key port in the Atlantic slave trade, which prompted violent representations of animal attacks and public hangings, scenes typically avoided in banners made for the tourist market.

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MORE APPLIQUÉ IN THE COLLECTION

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The Kuna women of Panama use reverse appliqué in crafting multi-colored panels for their blouses or molas.

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Hawaiian quilts are intricate high-contrast pieces that feature radially symmetric appliqué motifs. Images of pineapples are often incorporated into the design.

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Egyptian tent squares, originally used for decorative purposes by nomadic people, have designs that have been adapted from inlaid marble floors at mosques. During the latter part of the 20th century, Egyptians began making smaller banners like this to sell to tourists.

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The Hmong have long been known for their paj ntaub or flower cloth, embroidered and reverse appliquéd textiles with abstracted and culturally symbolic motifs.

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1. 1986, Benin, Gift of Helen Bentley 2. mid-20th century, Panama, Gift of Georgia M. Kelly (top), mid-20th century, Panama, Gift of Jane M. Leichsemring (bottom) 3. 1960-1969, Hawaii, Gift of Ellen Gasner 4. 1985-1995, Egypt, Gift of Helen Kelley 5. 1960-1969, Hmong, Gift of Barbara MacKay Kaerwer

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GOLDSTEIN MUSEUM OF DESIGN

COLLECTION

TEAM DIGI’S NEW PHOTOGRAPHER Thanks to public contributions, the collection digitization project continues to photograph GMD’s extensive collection of over 30,000 items of apparel, textiles, furniture, decorative arts, and more. This March, the digitization team (known inhouse as “Team Digi”) welcomed a new photographer, Ellen Skoro, to the team.

Until it closed last summer, Ellen was a photography instructor and administrator at the College of Visual Arts in Saint Paul. With a Masters degree from Minneapolis College of Art and Design and a Bachelors degree from Columbus College of Art and Design, Ellen has extensive experience as a freelance photographer. Her personal work, which can be seen at ellenskoro.com, focuses on portraiture. She was recently awarded a Minnesota State Arts Board (MSAB) Artist Initiative grant to finish a six-year portrait project. Her other work has revolved around capturing still lifes of objects, experience that will translate directly to photographing the GMD collection.

Ellen Skoro

Currently, Team Digi is photographing a variety of textiles from the collection.

In order to create the illusion that the pieces are lying flat or magically floating in a void, the team must create an elaborate setup consisting of black panels and fabric-covered bars propped against the wall at just the right angle.

Following the same protocol that has been in place for the objects that have been photographed in the past, the team meticulously calibrates the camera and shoots with powerful strobes in soft boxes. Undaunted by the complexity of this challenge, Ellen instead is exhilarated. “This museum is so cool! I’m really excited to be here!” she tells us. Welcome, Ellen!

IMPROVEMENTS IN STORAGE In Fall 2012, GMD received a grant to develop a plan to redesign and rehouse the collection storage area that houses 13,000 items (3850 textiles and 9150 items of historic apparel), some of which are the oldest objects in the collection. Some objects in this room are stored in cramped non-archival cabinets made of particle board and plastic laminate, while others are stored in 1920s wood cabinets or in acid-free textile boxes stacked high on top of cabinets.

Having ample space for each garment lessens the risk of damage by crushing and/or abrasion from other garments.

The re-housing of a portion of these collections will significantly enhance their preservation and facilitate their use in both classroom teaching and outreach programs.

This summer (2014) GMD will execute phase one of the plan to renovate this area. The project will take approximately 6 weeks starting early in July and concluding in mid-August.

During that time Gallery 241 in McNeal Hall will be closed to temporarily house the collection.

SUMMER 2014

This cotton flannel petticoat (1870-1910) is an example of the type of object that will be rehoused in the new cabinets.

Gift of Mrs. William J. Wirth

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DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE HELP US ZAP THE GAP! Since the 1930s, the GMD collection has been key for students to develop empathy for people from other times and cultures and to learn from their creativity. Now, over 20% of collection objects are represented photographically online. Visual access has become easier, and students are thrilled with the freedom to view items available previously only by appointment. Although nothing beats seeing an object in person, the photographs represent each object as the designer intended.

Since 2010, GMD has pursued this project with grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. These grants ended last fall, leaving a gap in funding. Over the winter of 2014, several generous donors responded positively to a request to fill this gap and enabled the project to continue.

Thank you!

If you missed this opportunity, never fear! You can still support the ongoing digitization project directly by visiting GMD’s website. Just click on “Get Involved” and select “Donate/Sponsor”. Follow the links to the online giving page and select “Goldstein Digitization Project” to make your tax-deductible donation.

Your contribution will allow people anywhere in the world to study the museum’s collection 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Help us preserve design history for generations to come!

Yours in design, Lin Nelson-Mayson

LAUREN LUNA WINS 2014 MARGOT SIEGEL DESIGN AWARD Lauren Luna is the winner of the Goldstein Museum of Design’s 2014 Margot Siegel Design Award. She combines professional training as a painter with an innovative approach to the sculptural qualities of shoes to develop unique footwear. Her designs range from custompainted sneakers to dramatic stilettos.

On April 17th, Lauren visited the College of Design where she received her award. She also led a creativity workshop where participants got the chance to try their hands at creating original shoe designs.

Lauren received a BFA in painting in 2000 from Kent State University, an MS in art education in 2004 from Manhattan College, and an MFA in painting in 2012 from Academy of Art University in San Francisco. She began painting custom high-top sneakers in 2008, drawing on art historical references such as Japanese woodblock prints and Van Gogh paintings as well as popular culture imagery. Her shoes quickly became and remain popular with musicians, actors, and artists.

In 2009, Lauren organized The Se7en Deadly Sins Fashion Show with student apparel designers at the Columbus College of Art and Design, creating twenty-one pairs of sculptural shoes – three for each of the seven sins – to complement the students’ designs. In 2013, a pair of the shoes illustrating Wrath was included in “Stepping into the Limelight”, an exhibition of footwear organized by GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts in Germany.

Lauren manufactured a line of shoes in 2012, which she hand painted and sold nationally online and through boutiques. In 2013, her shoes were shown in Austin and Houston Fashion Weeks, and featured in British Vogue and British Glamour. She was also named one of the Top 50 Creative Entrepreneurs by the Scion Company and received intensive training in entrepreneurial success.

Lauren currently lives in Houston, Texas, with her family, where she inspires creativity in kindergarten through 5th graders, and produces custom-painted shoes and Louis Vuitton handbags. She is a member of the Fashion Footwear Association of New York (FFANY).

Her shoes can be found at: http://www.laurenluna.com/

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GOLDSTEIN MUSEUM OF DESIGN

GMD DONORS SPRING 2014 NEW AND RENEWING MEMBERS Barbara Taylor Anderson & Richard Cooper Rachel Anthony Shirley Barber Sue J. Bartolutti Catherine Cerny Susan Cheney Jeanne Corwin Dolores Vnak DeFore Susan Elsner Thomas Fisher & Claudia Wielgorecki Marsha Jo Harder Sandra Johnson Barbara M. Kaerwer Judith Kinghorn Marit Lee Kucera Lin Nelson-Mayson Joy Norenberg Tim Quigley & Susan Throndrud Lois Simeral Constance Sommers Christopher Spong Sharon Toscano Karen Owen Tuzcu Linda Welters Stephanie Zollinger

COLLECTION DIGITIZATION Dolly J. Fiterman

Karla Kritz David Lange Lyndly & Kay Opitz Kathryn Reiley Lou Ann Restad Sandra Scott Norman Steere Shirley Unger Nancy Wenkel Juanjuan Wu

DIRECTOR’S FUND Sue J Bartolutti EXHIBITION SUPPORT GUILD Collective LLC Lula Vintage Succotash Tatters Alternative Clothing Via’s Vintage Woman’s Club of Minneapolis GENERAL SUPPORT Marian-Ortolf Bagley & Ayers Bagley Beverly & Donald Bajus Marlene Banttari Catherine Cerny Douglas A. & Ruth Hanold Crane Charitable Gift Fund Merry Detlefsen Ruth Donhowe Joanne Eicher Rosella Fefercorn Louise Fritchie Marjorie Gregory

Become a sustaining member today!

With a monthly contribution of just $5 (or $15 quarterly), you can receive this magazine and announcements of programs without ever having to remember to renew your membership.

GOLDSTEIN LIFE MEMBERS Joanne Eicher Gertrude Esteros Margot Siegel (founder of the Friends of the Goldstein, now GMD Members)

Go to “Get Involved” at goldstein.design.umn.edu and select “GMD Membership Fund”. In the right column click on “Recurring Gifts” and follow the directions. Just remember to designate GMD in the donation details.

Many thanks for your ongoing support!

GMD ADVISORY BOARD

BOARD MEMBERS

Todd Nelson, Anton Group

2013-2014 OFFICERS

Bradley Agee, Department of Landscape

Architecture, U of M

John Ollmann, Signals

PRESIDENT Tim Quigley, Quigley Architects

Richard Beckel, Primeau

PRESIDENT-ELECT Kent Hensley, Hensley Creative/The Bernard Group

Renée LeJeune Hallberg, RLH Studio

SECRETARY Cheryl Watson, Graphiculture

Matthew Hatch, Maximum Graphics

Christine Hartman, Holly Hunt

Julia Robinson, School of Architecture, U of M Christopher Spong, Campbell Mithun Stephanie Zollinger, Department of Design,

Housing and Apparel, U of M

Debra Herdman, debra herdman design

EX-OFFICIO

Linda Hersom, SHO Inc.

Dean Tom Fisher, College of Design

Kimberly Hogan, Community Volunteer

Brad Hokanson, Associate Dean for Research

and Outreach

Heidi Libera, Streeter & Associates Shanthini Logendran, Holly Hunt

Lin Nelson-Mayson, Director

GMD STAFF Hannah Bartz............................................................................................................................Gallery Staff Elizabeth Bischoff...................................................................................................................Gallery Staff Kathleen Campbell................................................................................................................. Grant Writer Mary Alice Chaney...........................................................................................Exhibitions Coordinator Alex Christl.................................................................................................................................Gallery Staff Karen Froistad..........................................................................................................................Gallery Staff Eunice Haugen............................................................................................................................... Registrar Betsy Intharath.........................................................................................................................Gallery Staff Barbara Lutz......................................................................................................Administrative Assistant Emily Marti.....................................................................................................Communications Assistant Jean McElvain.................................................................................................................Assistant Curator Kendall Moon............................................................................................................................Gallery Staff Joey Mueller..............................................................................................................................Gallery Staff Lauren Nelson..........................................................................................................................Gallery Staff Lin Nelson-Mayson......................................................................................................................... Director Rebekah Njaa............................................................................................................................... Preparator Jeanette Olson-Peterson....................................................................................................Gallery Staff Jeanne Schacht.............................................................................................................Graphic Designer Matt Shea....................................................................................................................................Gallery Staff Ellen Skoro..............................................................................................................................Photographer Natasha Thoreson.................................................................................................. Collection Assistant

SUMMER 2014

All GMD programming is made possible in part by a grant provided by the Minnesota State Arts Board through an appropriation by the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund with money from the vote of the people of Mnnesota on November 4, 2008, and a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Funding for the collection photography project was made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services.

The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer.

Printed on recycled and recyclable paper with at least 10 percent post-consumer material.

To request disability accommodations or to receive this publication/material in alternative formats please contact: Goldstein Museum of Design, 364 McNeal Hall, 612.624.7434.

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Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage

GALLERY 241 MCNEAL HALL, SAINT PAUL Tuesday–Friday 10:00 am–5:00 pm Weekends 1:30 pm–4:30 pm FREE admission

HGA GALLERY RAPSON HALL, MINNEAPOLIS

PAID

Twin Cities, MN Permit No. 90155

364 McNeal Hall 1985 Buford Avenue St. Paul, MN 55108

Monday–Friday 9:00 am–6:00 pm Weekends 1:00 pm–5:00 pm FREE admission

gmd@umn.edu 612.624.7434 goldstein.design.umn.edu Goldstein Museum of Design GoldsteinMuseum

AMERICAN HUSTLE Scotch Tasting

COME IN YOUR VINTAGE TO CELEBRATE THE DYNAMIC 1970s!

Behind-the-scenes look at 1970s fashions from GMD’s collection Scotch tasting featuring Brant Foehl and 5 Laphroaig drams $25 members

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$40 non-members

June 11, 2014, 6-9pm 274 McNeal Hall, 1985 Buford Ave., St. Paul, MN space is limited and reservations are required 612.624.7434