Esoteric Survey

  Inside the Design Center Ilse and Lloyd Ruocco’s Design Center, located in the Hillcrest neighborhood of San Diego, was a foundation for the modern design community of the 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s. Inside the Design Center brings to life a vignette of mid-twentieth century interior, lighting, and furniture design, featuring pieces by significant California designers, manufacturers, and craftspeople as selected by Ilse Ruocco for her 1950 showroom. This exhibition offers an immersive, revelatory window into San Diego’s culture of modernism through the lens of architecture, design, interior decorating, home goods retailing, landscape architecture, graphic design, and photography. Historic images of the Design Center set the backdrop for over 30 original pieces of modernist furnishings. Works by designers such as Ray Eames, Charles Eames, Greta Magnusson Grossman, Dorothy Schindele, Milo Baughman, and Edith Heath of Heath Ceramics are included.  Guest Co-Curators: Dave Hampton wi...

The 48 story Time & Life Building is  at 1271 Avenue of the Americas (6th Avenue) in Rockefeller Center, NYC. It opened in 1959 and was designed by the Rockefeller family's architect, Wallace Harrison. The exterior is really not much to look at, but the interior was incredible. Source: vintagemanhattanskyline There is also a Josef Albers installation in the lobby:  Portals (1961) carrara glass, nickel bronze and bronze Portals was installed in 1961 and is 42 feet wide by 14 feet high Source:  Albers Foundation Also in the lobby, is  Relational Painting #88  (1959) by Fritz Glarner Source:  Lost at E Minor Relational Painting #88  detail Source:  Blake Gopink Charles and Ray Eames designed this reception area.  Source: Time Another view Image:  Eames Design,  Neuhart Coincidentally, when I was putting this post together, Herman Miller posted a blueprint of the...