Higher National Diploma in 3D Design Year 1: Organic Design

THE ORGANIC DESIGN

In 1941, the Industrial Design Department at the Museum of Modern Art opened the Organic Design in Home Furnishings exhibit curated by Elliot Noyes. The show helped to solidify mid-century design as more than a trend, and helped people understand how design can fit into their everyday lives by encouraging museum-goers to use and interact with the furniture.

The Organic Design in Home Furnishings exhibit followed a competition that introduced legendary designers Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen, who collaborated for the win, awarding them a production and distribution contract with a major American department store.

Elliot Noyes defined the terms of organic design like this: “A design may be called organic when there is an harmonious organization of the parts within the whole, according to structure, material, and purpose. Within this definition there can be no vain ornamentation or superfluity, but the part of beauty is none the less great — in ideal choice of material, in visual refinement, and in the rational elegance of things intended for use.”