Design Conversation

At Design Conversation, we welcome a guest speaker every month and give you a chance to learn from design professionals and practitioners.

Just purchase a regular admission ticket and join the conversation!  Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and military, and $5 for students and children over 5. Members are free.

The Georgia Experiment: Georgia’s Contribution to “GOOD DESIGN”

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

The legacy of designers Eero Saarinen and Charles Eames includes what we now call “new media.” The IBM Think Pavilion at the 1964 World’s Fair is just one example of their work innovating with multiple screen arrays. Another landmark moment was Charles and Ray Eames’ work for the 1959 Moscow Exhibition, which is recognized in the history of virtual reality and education design. However, less is publicly know about the 1952 project Charles Eames and George Nelson designed at The University of Georgia, which acted as a protoype for those future projects.

This lecture, presented by Sean Mills, chronicles a collaborative effort that George Nelson called “The Georgia Experiment.” Hear how the greatest and most sought-after minds of the Modern era were assembled to direct the future of education design. We will chart the progress of these experiments, discussing their incorporation into an actual college curriculum in Athens, Georgia  and we will discuss the Museum of Modern Art’s “Good Design” exhibition, which featured their results.  Find out why Aline Loucheim Saarinen of the New York Times claimed that “the most exciting suggestion for the design of the future lies in the exhibition from the University of Georgia.