New York | The Female Voice in Modern Design: 1950 to 2000 Franco Albini & Franca Helg | Lisa Johansson-Pape

New York

20 Apr – 3 Jul 2022

Throughout the second half of the twentieth century, women were the minority in the profession of design, struggling to express their voices in a male-dominated field. Typically trained in traditionally “feminine” skills such as pottery, silversmithing, and textiles, professional female designers are responsible for only a small percentage of furniture and lighting design of this period. Yet, despite the significant gender imbalance, women designers triumphed—producing provocative objects in this era that continue to shine.

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New York | USA

Carpenters Workshop GalleryVisit

Artists

Franco Albini & Franca HelgLisa Johansson-Pape

Exhibition Statement

Needlework is the natural work of women; it should be the only work for women, it is work that does not take her away from the home and does not distance her from the cradle and the hearth."

Gio Ponti, Domus, 1939

This exhibition celebrates the superb achievements, skills, and contributions of European female designers throughout five formative decades. Their work shaped modern design; from the post-war years, to the women’s liberation movement, Postmodernism, Minimalism, and through the closing years of the twentieth century. Focusing on individual professional talents, this exhibition highlights the considerable and victorious accomplishments of women designers and their lasting impact on modern design. The pieces presented in this exhibition represent the very small percentage of furniture and lighting designed by women, whose daring and cutting-edge objects achieved a high standard of quality and excellence in a time of rampant gender discrimination.

Exhibiting works by 50 furniture and lighting designers and taking over Carpenters Workshop Gallery’s two floors, The Female Voice in Modern Design, 1950-2000 will open in February 2022. It will present an unprecedented collection of works organized by decade, with each section showcasing the best designs by female European designers. The works will be examined within the broader context of the decades in which they were created, with special attention paid to the state of the design world and period tastes. Themes such as feminism, oppression, technological innovation, the “contemporary,” and the increasing presence of women in the world of design will also be explored. All works on display will be offered for sale.

The Fifties

Eva Zeisel; Greta Magnusson Grossman; Vera Szekely; Mado Jolain; Charlotte Perriand; Line Vautrin; Denyse Gatard; Franca Helg; Luisa Parisi; Tove Kindt-Larsen; Maria Lindeman.

The Sixties

Pia Manu; Janine Abraham; Jacqueline Lecoq; Lisa Johansson-Pape; Nanna Ditzel; Gae Aulenti; Lina Bo Bardi; Maija Heikinheimo; Grete Jalk; Antonia Campi; Helena Tynell; Liisi Beckmann.

The Seventies

Cini Boeri; Nanda Vigo; Maria Pergay; Louise Nevelson; Eileen Gray; Eleanora Peduzzi-Riva; Gabriella Crespi; Marion Baruch; Marie-Claude de Fouquieres; Sabine Charoy.

The Eighties

Claude Lalanne; Nathalie Du Pasquier; Anna Castelli Ferrieri; Isabelle Serre; Elizabeth Garouste.

The Nineties

Zaha Hadid; Caroline Schlyter; Ayala Serfaty; Hella Jongerius; Louise Campbell; Paloma Garrido.

Exhibition views

Artists

Franco Albini & Franca Helg

Franco Albini (1905-1977) was an Italian architect and designer, who is attached to the Italian Rationalism movement.

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Lisa Johansson-Pape

Lisa Johansson-Pape was born in Finland in 1907. She studied design at what is now the Aalto University School of Arts, Design, and Architecture. Upon graduating in 1927, Johansson-Pape began designing furniture for Kylmäkoski and, in 1937, went on to design for Stockmann. After making lamps for the war effort, Johansson-Pape discovered an interest in lighting design and in 1942 began designing for Orno. A leader in the field, Johansson-Pape was the artistic director of the Friends of Finnish Handicraft from 1951 to 1985 and was also responsible for co-founding the Illuminating Engineering Society of Finland.

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