American Streamlined Design

At the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Until this Sunday, October 28. Free Admission.

They applied the principals of aerodynamics to household objects, beginning with tools and appliances. They created a look, mostly in the 30s and 40s, that just would not let go of its grip on our collective psyche. There's something that remains "modern" about these designs, even almost 80 years later. We have made the materials lighter and more sophisticated (not so much steel and bakelite anymore) but we have not really created a "look" that says "future" quite so loudly. Is it better to live in the future ("future is now") or to live in a time when the future is brightly illuminated ahead of you?


“Modern design entered the American home not through the front door, but by way of the kitchen, bathroom and garage.” -Walter Dorwin Teague, Design This Day