The Art Institute of Chicago
Museum Studies
Volume 27, no. 2 (Fall 2001)
Edited by Gregory Nosan
Awarded Honorable Mention, AAM Publications Design Competition
This stunning publication showcases The Art Institute of Chicago’s fascinating holdings of twentieth-century American ceramics, furniture, glass, and metalwork. Colorful, engaging essays examine approximately forty of the museum’s most compelling decorative objects, introducing major design trends and illuminating the philosophies and personalities of seminal designers such as Paul Frankl and Charles and Ray Eames. An introductory essay by Judith A. Barter, Field-McCormick Curator of American Arts, investigates the idealistic impulses that informed many modernist designs. In an extended catalogue, author Jennifer M. Downs explores how twentieth-century interiors and furnishings were influenced by contemporary movements in architecture and the fine arts, and by major events such as the Great Depression, Chicago’s 1933 “Century of Progress International Exposition,” and World War II. A striking, definitive guide to an increasingly important collection, Shaping the Modern will intrigue newcomers and modern-design enthusiasts alike. The Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies, published twice annually, presents articles on the collections and history of the Art Institute.
Articles in this publication:
Judith A. Barter, “Designing for Democracy: Modernism and Its Utopias”
Jennifer M. Downs, “‘The New, Modern Feeling’: A Catalogue of the Collection”
112 pages, 8 3/8 x 10 1/4 in.
ISBN-13: 9780865591875
ISBN-10: 0865591873
