Decorative Arts Calendar of Events

There are lots of interesting things happening this month, including a film festival focusing on design, several exhibition openings and Cooper-Hewitt’s annual National Design Week. Also, October is the start of the antiques show season so there are lots of opportunities to see some really neat things… write in and tell me what you had a chance to see and do!

See

The Artistic Furniture of Charles Rohlfs, Metropolitan Museum of Art, October 19, 2010-January 23, 2011. Charles Rohlfs (1853-1936) created innovative works that combined elements of Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau, and proto-modernism in surprising and original ways. Rohlfs designed only a few hundred works and was seminal force in the history of American art furniture. Fifty examples of furniture and related objects will be on view.

Eat Drink Art Design: Trailblazing Tableware from the MAD Collection, Museum of Arts and Design, September 21, 2010 through March 27, 2011. Showcases tableware – cups, plates, silverware, and tea sets – that redefines the art of dining. The exhibition features 60 aesthetically delectable pieces from beautifully handcrafted mid-century pots, to elegant flatware and goblets, to more conceptual works by artists who use the familiarity of tableware as a frame for contemporary issues.

Closing this month: Dead or Alive, Museum of Arts and Design, through October 24, 2010. Showcase the work of over 30 international artists who transform organic materials and objects that were once produced by or part of living organisms-insects, feathers, bones, silkworm cocoons, plant materials, and hair-to create intricately crafted and designed installations and sculptures. Dead or Alive features new site-specific installations and recent work by contemporary artists from around the world, including artist Xu Bing shadow version of a 24-foot Song Dynasty painting using only vegetable detritus, weeds, leaves, and roots.

Architecture and Design Film Festival, October 14-17, 2010, Tribeca Cinemas (54 Varick Street) See a dynamic selection of feature length films, documentaries and shorts—plus lively discussions with filmmakers, architects, and designers. For details and to purchase tickets visit adfilmfest.com. 

Hear

BILL’S DESIGN TALKS: Design Trajectory with Ralph Caplan, Thursday, October 7, 2010, 6:30 – 8:00pm. $15 / $10 members, students and seniors. A new series of design conversations with Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum Director Bill Moggridge. This year Ralph Caplan is honored with the National Design Mind Award for his contributions to design research and scholarship. The design process has moved from just forming objects to addressing the situations in which objects are used. That’s a major theme in Ralph Caplan’s seminal book By Design, expressed in the book’s subtitle: “Why There Are No Locks on the Bathroom Doors of the Hotel Louis IV and Other Object Lessons.” Caplan will offer his take on the Cooper-Hewitt’s role in shaping the understanding and presentation of design from its opening exhibition in 1976, Man TRANSforms, to the current exhibition Why Design Now?

Sourcing Sustainable Fashion, Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum Thursday, October 28, 6:30–8:00pm. Members $10; non-Members $15. The trend toward organic goods and ethical trade is spreading in the fashion world with a wealth of new initiatives to connect designers to sustainable resources and materials. Hear from Summer Rayne Oakes, Co-founder/CEO of Source4Style, and Tone Tobiasson, co-founder of NICE, Nordic Initiative Clean & Ethical, and nicefashion.org. Register online at cooperhewitt.org/calendar

Travel

MICHAEL GRAVES: DESIGN FOR ALL, Wolfsonian, Miami Friday, October 15, 7pm. Architect and self-proclaimed “general practitioner” of design, Michael Graves shares his thoughts on the ways good design affects us all. His cross-disciplinary practice is broad and includes architecture, planning, interiors, product, and graphic design. Founder and principal of the architecture and interior design practice Michael Graves & Associates and the product and graphic design practice Michael Graves Design Group, his firms have designed over 350 buildings and more than 1,800 consumer products from building components to bath and kitchen products to jewelry and dinnerware for companies including Alessi, Steuben, and Disney. Graves’ work with Target in a range of product categories has made his signature design accessible larger public. Reception following talk sponsored by Target. Tickets are limited to Diplomat-level members and above. For more information or to RSVP: 305.535.2626.

Celebrate

National Design Week, Various locations, free admission to the Cooper-Hewitt, Saturday, October 9–Sunday, October 17. A series of public programs surrounding the National Design Awards. Highlights include Target Design Kids Presents Kid Made Modern, Teen Design Fair, National Design Awards Winners’ Panel, The Business of Design, and Design Films.

National Design Awards, Cipriani 42nd Street, 110 East 42nd Street, Thursday, October 14
Gala Dinner and Awards Ceremony | 6:00 p.m. After-Party | 10:00 p.m.
Cooper-Hewitt celebrates the National Design Awards with its annual awards ceremony and dinner. Continue the celebration at the After-Party with cocktails and desserts with music by DJ Baby Andy. Advance After-Party tickets: Members $50; non-Members $75; at the door $100. For Gala and After-Party tickets and information, visit nationaldesignawards.org or call 212.849.8425.

Support

The Modern Show 7 West 34th Street @ Fifth Avenue, New York City. Show Admission: $15 – $20 with a one year subscription to MODERNISM Magazine. Show Hours: Friday, October 15, 11 am-7 pm, Saturday, October 16, 11 am-7 pm, Sunday, October 17, 11 am-5 pm. The best of 20th century design for stylish 21st century collectors. This show is a good show to visit. As the organizers say, “important but not at all imposing”. Art Deco, Midcentury Modern, Nouveau, Arts & Crafts, Scandinavian, French and Italian —- Furniture and furnishings, art, designer jewelry, lighting, rugs, books, photography, ceramics, glass, posters, silver and more.

International Fine Art & Antique Dealers Show, Park Avenue Armory, Park Ave and 67th Street. October 22 through October 28th. Show Hours: Daily 11-7:30 except till 6 pm on Sunday and the last day of the show. An antiques show featuring 70 of the top dealers from around the world. This is considered to be the most important shows of the fall season. It is not to be missed and full coverage of the show will follow its opening.

Loot, Museum of Arts and Design, The exhibition and sale from Thursday, October 21 to Tuesday, October 26 during regular museum hours. LOOT will also be open on Monday, October 25 from 11am – 6pm. LOOT is MAD’s biennial juried exhibition and sale of one-of-a-kind contemporary art jewelry, created by acclaimed American and international artists. A full weekend of programs will accompany the exhibition and sale in the second floor design galleries including curatorial lectures, panel discussions with experts and designers, artists’ talks and workshop demonstrations in the MAD artists’ studios. Over 60 artists, representing some fifteen different countries, have agreed to participate in LOOT. Over 2,000 pieces will be on view and for sale during the run of the exhibition. A special focus of LOOT 2010 will be the work of fifteen Dutch artists including Beppe Kessler, Iris Nieuwenburg, and Truike Verdegaal. Many participating Dutch artists will be in attendance. Special family focused hands-on workshops will be held on the weekend.