Racing to the finish line so it seemed, for we only had a little under an hour before the museum closed, Davin, Pam, Karlie and I visited the Cooper Hewitt National Design museum Friday evening. The museum was small but held a vast collection of interesting contemporary innovations. In the design USA exhibit, features of amazing contemporary achievements in American architecture, landscape design, interior design, product design, communication design, corporate design, interaction design, and fashion, were shown throughout the whole exhibit. It was amazing seeing what different types of artists have done in collaboration with design for people’s every day necessities.
The Design for a living World was fascinating as well. The exhibit featured ten leading designers who have been commissioned to develop new uses for sustainably grown and harvested materials in order to tell a unique story about the life-cycle of materials and the power of conservation and design. I really enjoyed the massive amounts of wool that were on display in the museum. It looked very lush and I couldnt take my eyes off of it as Pam could account for. I also loved the bamboo display. Every print on the walls were stunning with the metallic colors and vibrant feel to it.
I thoroughly enjoyed this field trip and am sad to say it is my last.

Sincerely,

FIERCE!!!!!!!

What caught my attention the most was the outward appearance of the Cooper-Hewitt which helped greatly in finding it. Before visiting I found the historical background of the place interesting since it is the former home of Andrew Carnegie. After entering and paying the $10 admission, I ventured out to make the best out of the experience. The Design USA: Contemporary Innovation was pretty much self-explanatory. It was fascinating to see everything they had in person. I was impressed with the award recipients’ work of interior design, fashion and architecture and other fields.
The Design for A Living World gave off an innovative and modern feel as well. I loved the work a lot, especially the dress Isaac Mizrahi made out of salmon leather. The texture just fascinated me and I would have never guessed where it came from. What also caught my eye were the photos printed on the recycled aluminum. Overall, it was amazing to see how much dedication and hard work the designers put into making use of the sustainable materials in the countries that were struggling economically. It definitely made me more aware of the people in these countries and how they don’t have a choice in making something out of what’s available for them while we basically have everything. This exhibit successfully put design, creativity and innovation in perspective.

Dear Garrett,
My name has no “e” at the end of it however; I am pretty sure I might have just misspelled your name.

Moving on. While I did enjoy visiting the Cooper Hewitt museum, it did not seem to make an impression one me. But that is probably because I arrived an hour before it closed on Friday and I felt rushed while looking through the museums collections. The Design for a Living World was really unique exhibit. Each section was like a mini-story told through the drawings, prototypes, and finished products of the designers. I like how each designer elaborated on the process of harvesting the sustainable materials. Because the venue was once Andrew Carnegie’s mansion, it had an atmosphere was very intimate and homey unlike most of the museums I have visited this semester.

-Karli

As our last field trip of the semester I decided the $10 was worth spending. When I go to the museum my first observation was the contrast of how old the building was with all of the contemporary design inside. I agree with Garrett that for a small place it held a lot of work and I was actually surprised with how much there was to see. It’s easy to forget that everyday necessities are pieces of art made by designers and the Design USA reminded me that almost everything we use is a piece of art. Probably my favorite part about the field trip was in The Design for a Living World. I loved how the artists work were shown from prototype to finished product really giving you an idea of the process artists go through while creating pieces or work. Scientists and environmentalist are the first people that come to my mind when I hear words like eco-friendly and conservation, but to see fashion designers and artists using these ideas and techniques in the work is somewhat inspirational because these people can connect better with the everyday joe than a scientist. Because the environment is a growing concern in the country and also internationally I thought this was an important field trip to take for young people as it can be the push or influence that turns them towards being green and help in this environmentally friendly movement.

After venturing through the cold with three crazy accomplices I found myself at the Cooper Hewitt Museum and almost immediately upon entry found that this museum was less suited for myself and more suited for my siblings who work with design for their careers, such as interior design and architecture. Since I had very little time in the museum I tried and gain as much intellect as I could from my visit. I first saw the Contemporary Innovation section and found that the museum stored many of the first designs that modern designers use to help their models today, such as the first subway map and simple drawings of cups and silverware and how they were created from such detail drawings. This exhibition showed me that no work in the design field is forgotten and that this was the haven filled with Lifetime Achievement awards today to remember the people who helped modern designers get to where they are. Through their designs they communicate all the things they have done to other designers to create more and more great things.
While Design for a Living World was an exhibition on designs for the world today with its interest in using organic goods rather than using things that will destroy our planet. I liked how the exhibit had in the center room a table showing the areas in which each material were excavated and showing how designers could change that material into any kind of design they want, such as blankets, tables, and chairs.
The museum was very interesting, but not really my piece of cake. I feel as if my siblings would have had a better time here since it more relates to the careers they have, though Contemporary Innovation had work from communication designers who created campaigns and designs that helped to sell products and create awareness.

The Cooper Hewitt Museum was interesting. The building itself was an awesome design alone. First I visited the Design USA Contemporary Innovation exhibit. This exhibit basically focused on contemporary achievements in American architecture and other aspects of design. It was an interesting exhibit because it had lots of interactive aspects and events going on within it. I noticed the day after I was there they would be having a holiday card and wrapping paper workshop which I thought was pretty cool.
Next on the agenda was the Design for a Living World exhibit. I enjoyed this exhibit more because it focused on more of the “green” aspects of design. It was cool to see how certain materials were being newly used to better help the environment. I thought it was neat that top designers such as Kate Spade and Isaac Mizrah contributed to working on this exhibit.
Overall the museum was cool. It was different on the others since it was focused on the aspects of design.

The final museum we had to exhibit and it had a lot more hours to work with. This museum I had recently heard about from my cousin who works with a lot of interior design. I knew there was going to be a lot of contemporary designs within the exhibit. Since I knew this it was interesting as I approached the building, as it was not very modern. I really enjoyed the Design USA exhibit my cousin had told me about. It was interesting to look at designs that are in our everyday life that are art but do not always get recognized as art. I too really enjoyed the award recipient’s interior design work; it was truly an amazing piece of work. It was interesting as I ventured through the exhibits thinking of all the things we walk past everyday that someone took time and thought into how to design it. Each designer thinks and puts into what they create is extremely hard work and is sad that many people do not recognize it. Overall this museum was an interesting and eye opening museum to things that we take advantage of.

-Meghan Rose

The “Museum Mile” is a personal favorite of mine and I am glad I got to walk it with Garret, Davin, and Kar! I was so excited that we were able to venture as high up as ninety First Street for our last hurrah. This trip took us full circle as our first and last field trips were to mansions turned into museums. I’m so happy that I got to share the last field trip experience with three great friends that I met in your class!
Once we arrived to the museum we walked inside and (sadly) paid our ten dollars. The first room we went into was titled Design USA: Contemporary Innovation. This room held many contemporary innovations from throughout time. The architectural innovations caught my attention right away. The unbelievable architecture opened my eyes to appreciate different forms of art. In addition I loved that the process of the designs were on display. So often we look at finished works of art, but have no concept of how the designer got there.
After we finished in the first room, we ran up the red velvet steps to the second floor. We got a little scared on the steps, as they resembled the architecture from the movie the haunting. The second room we went into was titled Design for a living world. This exhibit just as the first was educational in the sense that it increased my awareness of where the materials that designers use come from. Like Davin, I loved the map that displayed the materials on the countries in which they were pioneered. In addition, I loved the emphasis on “eco-friendliness” as that is so relevant to our society. Overall the trip was fantastic and I am going to miss everyone so much!

Sincerely,

FIERCE JR. <3

I had never been to the Cooper-Hewitt Museum before, and when first arriving I saw the architecture and thought I’d be entering a stuffy old mansion with old paintings on the walls, I was pleasantly proven wrong. Although the building itself is old the pieces and exhibits are everything but. I never thought of Tupperware as a museum worthy item, or a fleece made with all organic materials. I never understood the design and mechanics that went into a fork or knife. My favorite exhibit was the one on the second floor, with the aluminum photographs and natural wonders of the world. Before the Cooper-Hewitt Museum I never knew about the “ivory” nut, or the amount of wool a single sheep can produce, or the uses of bamboo shoots, or how organic cocoa mix can be art. All of these pieces were about “going green” or how there are still materials out there yet to be discovered and how new ideas get formed everyday. I never knew that latex came from trees, and that it is a main component of gum, or that it is still a “new” material that many don’t know what to do with. I fell in love with the bamboo shoots as wine holders, or computer stands. I never would have thought of that as a use for bamboo. Also the bamboo chair in the lobby of the second floor was an new take of bamboo furniture as well. And next to the bamboo was the salmon leather, which seemed like a whole upside down idea to begin with. All in all I really enjoyed the Cooper- Hewitt Museum and all it had to offer.

Best museum by far! Saturday I hopped on the 6 train and took a ride up town. It was cool and I arrived a little up set on account of the weather. Once I arrived at the Cooper Hewitt museum the snow began. I paid the painful admission fee and began my journey through the museum. My favorite collection was the drawing, print and graphic designs. Since my father is an artist, my interest in drawing has grown over the years. The Nike shoes were really cool and so was the IPods. I found out that the iPod changed that way music was heard. After the museum I went home in the coldest wealth I have experience in New York by far

The Cooper Hewitt Museum is a beautiful building located on the upper east side of New York City. It almost looks like it does not belong there. Like it belongs to some long ago version of New York, as if the building had been there for a very long time. When entering the building it takes on a much more modern look. One of the exhibitions featured at the gallery is called Design USA and it features mostly photographs from the winners of the National design awards which is an award given to interior designers. To see interior design featured in a museum is a very interesting thing. The exhibition featured pictures from everything from interior design to exterior art installations. Things like bushes and plants grown into certain shapes and giant ice walls were showcased in this exhibit. The other exhibition that I looked at was called Design for a living world. The exhibit asked artist to take harvested materials and create art. A lot of the items in the exhibitions were either prototypes or sketches of things that the artists intend to make with the materials. The designs were very cool and modern and it gave the whole museum a very hip feel to it. The fact that artists are being paid to make things like this is very cool and shows that visual art is still an important medium even in today’s Youtube world.