The company has been honored for extraordinary contribution to 20th Century design with a Modernism Design Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Brooklyn Museum, one of the oldest and largest art museums in the country.
An award ceremony was held at “Modernism: A Century of Style and Design” on November 16 at the Seventh Regiment Armory in New York City. James Ludwig, Steelcase director of design, accepted the award on behalf of Steelcase.
The Lifetime Achievement Award was established to recognize those who have made significant contributions to 20th Century design. Based on a thorough research and development process, including video ethnography, Steelcase incorporates design principles into its products and solutions that address the three core elements of an office environment: interior architecture, furniture, and technology.
From the company’s first patent for a metal wastebasket in 1914 to the development of environmentally sensitive products like the Think(R) chair, Steelcase strives for a heritage of design innovation and customer-centered solutions.
“The Brooklyn Museum is proud to present Steelcase with the 2006 Modernism Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of a century of extraordinary and innovative furniture design that melds groundbreaking creativity and cutting edge technology,” said Brooklyn Museum Director Arnold Lehman.
“Steelcase is honored to be recognized for our achievement in modern design,” said Ludwig. “Now we want to build upon our past and embrace a new modernism that is as much about designing the experience as it as about designing the ‘thing.’ The new modernism, like the old, is about designing with clarity and sophisticated restraint, and it’s about making things better–but in a more humanistic, sustainable way.”
Since the creation of the Lifetime Achievement Award, the nominating committee has been made up of current and former members of the Brooklyn Museum staff. Some of the members of this year’s committee include:
* Arnold Lehman, Director, Brooklyn Museum
* Sanford Smith, Producer, “Modernism: A Century of Style and Design”
* Marianne Lamonaca, Assistant Director, Exhibitions and Cultural Affairs, Florida International University
* Christopher Wilk, Department of Furniture and Woodwork, Victoria and Albert Museum
* Dianne Pilgrim, Director, Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, Smithsonian
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