Museum Musings
The Cooper Hewitt
National Design Museum
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Smithsonian’sCooper-Hewitt, ber19– 25.Th emuseumoffersfree 2008,andthewinningdesignwill NationalDesignMuseum admissionalongwithseveralfree beannouncedonOctober23,2008, istheonlymuseuminthe publicprograms.New YorkCityarea attheNationalDesignAwardsgala UnitedStatesdevotedexclu- teensareinvitedtothemuseumfor inNew YorkCity.Lessonplansand
sivelytohistoricandcontemporary the TeenDesignFairtolearnabout activitiesaroundtheawardsareavail-
design. Themuseum’sdynamicedu- designcareersfromprofessional ableonCooper-Hewitt’swebsite,
cationalprogramsprovideinsight designersanddesigncolleges.In alongwitha“DesignAcrossAmer-
intothewaysinwhichdesignshapes 2007,studentswerethrilledtohear ica”onlinemapfeaturingdesign
ourliveseveryday,encouragingusto keynotespeaker TimGunn,from eventstakingplaceacrossthecoun-
understandhow ProjectRunway try.
designcanbest Themuseum’sprograms andmeetdesign-
beusedtoshape use“design”asaverb, ersfromall EducatorResourceCenter
apositivefuture. engagingaudiencesinthefields. Cooper-Hewitt’sEducatorResource
Themuseum’s Themuseum Center(ERC)isyourone-stopshop
design process, and bringing
programsuse hostsanEduca- fordesigneducationresources(www.
“design”asa participantsclosertodesign torOpenHouse, educatorresourcecenter.org). Teachers
verb,engaging professionalsandresources.invitingteach- canfindmorethan250design-fo-
audiencesinthe erstocelebrate cused,multidisciplinarylessonplans.
designprocess,andbringingpartici- NationalDesign Weekbylearning TheERChostsseveralactiveconver-
pantsclosertodesignprofessionals aboutCooper-Hewitt’smanyeduca- sationboardsaswellaslinkstosev-
andresources.Throughitswebsite tionprograms.Themuseumalso eralonlinedesign-focusedresources,
andteacher-trainingprograms,teach- honorstheyear’smostoutstand- andfeaturesvideosofvariousCooper-
ersandstudentsacrossthecountry ingcontributionsfromthedesign Hewittprofessionaldevelopmentand
canaccessdesignintheirownclass- worldthroughtheNationalDesign publicprograms. Teacherscanalso
rooms. Awards.Videohighlightsandkeynote participatein Cooper-Hewitt’sprofes-
speechesareavailableatwww.coop- sionaldevelopmentprogramsforedu-
NationalDesignWeek erhewitt.org. catorsacrossthecountry.
EveryOctober,Cooper-Hewittpres- Classroomsacrossthecountrycan
entstheNationalDesignAwards alsoparticipateinNationalDesign ACityofNeighborhoods
andNationalDesign Week,itslarg- Week.Studentsandteacherscan Cooper-Hewitt’sACityofNeighbor-estdesigneducationinitiative.This nominateandvotefortheirfavor- hoodsprofessionaldevelopmentpro-year’sfestivitiestakeplaceOcto- itedesignsforthePeople’sDesign
Award.VotingbeginsSeptember21, Continuedonpage87.
14 schoolartsonline.com
Continued from page 14.
Louisiana, have participated in “City
of Neighborhoods” professional
development trainings during the
summer. In the summer of 2007, forty
teachers from New Orleans investigated, researched, and redesigned
Chinatown in New York. The teachers implemented what they learned
in the classroom and Cooper-Hewitt
hosted a K– 12 Design Fair in New
Orleans in May of 2008. This partnership encourages students to see themselves as designers in their own right
as they engage in the design process
through active observation, critical
discussion, the act of making, visual
communication and presentation, and
critique.
Summer Design Institute
For one week every summer, Cooper-Hewitt invites educators and designers to participate in the Summer
Design Institute, which features
hands-on workshops and keynote
presentations that connect the school
curriculum with the world beyond
the classroom. An international
roster of renowned designers and
design educators share strategies for
engaging K– 12 students in the design
process. Teachers listen to and work
with designers to solve problems
around the world such as water filtration, transportation, shelter, and rural
education in the developing world,
allowing the teachers to solve the
problems themselves.
Caroline Payson is director of education
at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design
Museum.
cooperhewitt.org
A Texas
potter makes
1,300 pound
quilts with
her Paragon
Dragon Earline Green’s clay quilts
in the Dunbar Lancaster-Kiest Library in Dallas,
Texas.
As a child, Earline Green
Earline Green with her Paragon Dragon
made hand-stitched quilts with her grand- front-loading kiln. This kiln is becoming a
mother Mama Freddie. Earline spent more favorite with teachers. It is easy to load
time quilting with the older ladies than she did and easy on the back.
playing with children her own age. Her early
experiences with the lively quilters taught her a at a time. I expected and re-
life-long love of artwork. ceived excellent results with
Earline’s other grandmother, Mama Gin- each firing.”
ger, taught her advanced quilting patterns. If you need a kiln that is
Later this influenced the design of Earline’s easy on the back, consider
stoneware quilt tile mosaics displayed in the the Paragon Dragon. Con-Paul Laurence Dunbar Lancaster-Kiest Li- tact us today for more infor-
brary in Dallas, Texas. For that project, mationonthisexcitingkiln.
Earline fired 284 white stoneware tiles—all in
her faithful Paragon Dragon.
“The Dragon's design and controls are perfect for firing large flat pieces,” said Earline. Better
“The digital programming controls provide a Designed
consistent firing environment that eliminated Kilns
cracks and warpage in this project.
“During tile production, I fired my Dragon
two or three times a week for four to six weeks
2011 South Town East Blvd.,
Mesquite, Texas 75149-1122
800-876-4328 / 972-288-7557
Toll Free Fax 888-222-6450
www.paragonweb.com
info@paragonweb.com
Circle No. 141 on Reader‘s Service Card
Knowing the History of DESIGN
In addition to producing designs, students should learn a bit about the history of
design—some key figures and the work they did. Design is relatively recent and
many of the key American designers did their work in just the last 200 years.
Key Figures in Design
U Frederick Law Olmsted (1822–1903), the father of park design (including
Central Park in New York City), did much of his work from the 1850s on.
U Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959), designer of famous buildings such as
Fallingwater, did much of his work in the 1900s.
U Raymond Loewy (1893–1986), considered the father of Industrial Design,
created designs like the Studebaker car and the Pennyslvania Railroad's
streamlined locomotive beginning in the 1930s.
U Paul Rand (1914–1996), the father of American graphic design, did logos for
companies like IBM, Ford, and Westinghouse in the 1950s.
U And Will Wright (b. 1960), a leader in the interactive game design field,
began working on games like “The Sims” in the 1990s.
Design Education
Students can recognize many famous designs but often don't know who created them or when. Design education should include production, history, criticism, and aesthetics.
