Wikipedia

Pirouette: Turning Points in Design

Pirouette: Turning Points in Design is an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.[5] According to the museum, "the objects in Pirouette highlight the role of designers at their most inventive ... and demonstrate the power of design to translate human experience into tangible forms and envision a better future."[6] The exhibition features "widely recognized design icons and those known to more niche audiences, highlighting pivotal moments in design history."[7]

Warming stripes data-graphic showing global warming annually since 1850, an example of climate change art by Ed Hawkins (2025)[1][2][3][a]

Overview

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Sad Mac and Happy Mac icons by Susan Kare (1980s)[8]

Pirouette: Turning Points in Design opened in January 2025 at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.[6]

The exhibition was curated by Paola Antonelli with assistance from Maya Ellerkmann,[9][10][11] and includes many familiar and iconic designs such as BiC Crystal pens,[12] Post-it notes, M&Ms candy, as well as Susan Kare's original hand-drawn artwork[13] from the early 1980s for the first Mac OS icons.[14][5][6] In addition to these widely recognised cultural artefacts, the show also examines the impact of less well-known designs such as Massoud Hassani's wind-powered deminer,[15] the Doctors Without Borders middle upper arm circumference measuring device (a.k.a. MUAC "Bracelet of Life"),[16] Sabine Marcelis's Candy Cubes,[17] and the first 176 emojis devised by Shigetaka Kurita for NTT DoCoMo in the late 1990s.[18][19] More familiar works of 2D graphic design include the 1975 NASA worm logo by Bruce Blackburn and Richard Danne,[7] warming stripes graphics by climate scientist Ed Hawkins,[1][20][21] and the I ♥ NY logo – displayed together with Milton Glaser's original "back of a taxi" concept sketch for the iconic design.[18][22][23]

 
You Can't Lay Down Your Memory by Tejo Remy for Droog (1991)[24][b]
 
View-Master Model G by Chuck Harrison (1962)[26]

The variety of objects presented ranges from an original 1960s Sacco bean bag chair designed by Piero Gatti, Cesare Paolini, and Franco Teodoro [it],[27] to the ubiquitous, mass-produced, and anonymously designed injection moulded plastic monoblock garden chair; from the creations of familiar names like Charles and Ray Eames or Virgil Abloh, to familiar objects by less know creators like Art Fry and Spencer Silver, Sara Blakely, Jerry Manock, or the Décolletage Plastique Design Team [d];[28] from industrially manufactured products like a 1980s Sony Walkman portable cassette player, to bespoke, handcrafted, and experimental curiosities such as a chest of drawers by Tejo Remy [nl] titled You Can't Lay Down Your Memory,[24] various objects designed by Christien Meindertsma and made from flax, as well as a macramé-carbon fibre chair by Marcel Wanders;[6][17][14] and from the patented and trademarked yet widely copied Moka Express coffee pot, to the freely licensed, open source, 3D printed Free Universal Construction Kit by Golan Levin and Shawn Sims.[29][30][13][23]

The pieces on view are mostly from MoMA's collection and represent the work of 118 artists, designers, inventors, and other creators – an extensive display through which visitors are "guided only by wall text and interrupted by the occasional interactive installation" such as early 1960s View-Master stereoscopes.[31][26][32]

Events including an Abecedarium during which "twenty-six designers, scholars, DJs, photographers, and entrepreneurs [discussed] one paradigm-shifting object or idea, each corresponding to one letter of the alphabet" were held in support of the exhibition.[33][34] The day-long series of talks, staged in the museum's Celeste Bartos [d] theater, presented audiences with "a steady stream of objects, voices, and perspectives" and an opportunity to "discover how objects and designs" from Post-it notes to the tampon "changed our culture and society."[34][33][35] Participants included Alice Rawsthorn (Q for Quotidian), Sarah Kaufman [d] (U for Universal), Susan Kare (I for Icon), Norman Teague (C for Chair), Andrés Jaque (K for Kitchen), Brandon Blackwood (L for Luxury), and Caterina Fake (Y for Yesterday).[36]

Reception and criticism

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Mine Kafon by Massoud Hassani (2011)[15][c]

The show has been described as an "ode to the power of design" which is intended to underscore "how important design is as a social force and a form of human expression" and "offers a captivating reflection on the power of design to change behavior", while other sources have observed that the exhibition "showcases the industrial design of our never-ending age of anxiety."[31][10][20]

Mark Feeney, writing in The Boston Globe, remarked that "both the deminer and Bracelet of Life leave considerations of mere aesthetics far behind. They're a reminder that good design can be a literal matter of life and death." Feeney compares Hawkins's warming stripes to a Morris Louis painting, observing that "seen in strictly visual terms, the graphic is quite pleasing [while] understood conceptually, it's alarming to contemplate."[38][5] He also notes that "some of the most striking and/or highest-profile designs in 'Pirouette' are incorporeal", referring to Glaser's I ♥ NY logo, Kare's original Mac GUI icons, as well as other computer graphics featured in the exhibition such as "digital typefaces ... the @ sign for email [and] Google map pins".[5][2]

In reference to the inclusion of political provocations like the Gay Pride flag and a "giant, dandelion-like anti-landmine device", Architectural Record observed that "in a climate where even the most anodyne appeals for inclusion and peace suddenly seem so aberrant, Antonelli's game feels like a surprisingly brave one."[31][15] The review also remarked that "putting the everyday, the ephemeral, and the commercial under the intellectual spotlight" shows to what extent MoMA and its curator are willing to go in order to "broaden the purview of the institution – and presumably its audience".[31]

Notes

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  1. ^ This image depicts the period from 1850 to 2024 (as of January 2025). The minimalist style of warming stripes was conceived by climate scientist Ed Hawkins to intuitively convey global warming trends to non-scientists without unnecessary technical distractions. Periodically updated versions and related graphics under CC BY-4.0 licence are available at source.[4]
  2. ^ Pictured example is in the collection of the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam[25]
  3. ^ Pictured in 2015 during Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven.[37]

References

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  1. ^ a b Hernandez, Arlette; Hawkins, Ed; Tabassum, Marina (21 April 2025). "Designing for Climate Change". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 6 August 2025.
  2. ^ a b "Installation view of the exhibition 'Pirouette: Turning Points in Design' (1 of 2)". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  3. ^ "Installation view of the exhibition 'Pirouette: Turning Points in Design' (2 of 2)". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
  4. ^ "Professor Ed Hawkins". Ed Hawkins. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  5. ^ a b c d Feeney, Mark (23 July 2025). "At MoMA, designs for living". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 24 Jul 2025. Retrieved 26 July 2025.
  6. ^ a b c d "The Museum of Modern Art announces Pirouette: Turning Points in Design" (PDF). The Museum of Modern Art. 16 September 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
  7. ^ a b "NASA Worm as Art, Museum of Modern Art Opens Exhibition Featuring NASA Worm". NASA. 23 January 2025. Retrieved 29 July 2025.
  8. ^ Kindy, David (9 October 2019). "How Susan Kare Designed User-Friendly Icons for the First Macintosh". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
  9. ^ Menaldo, Paola (5 February 2025). "Paola Antonelli: 'Capire l'importanza del design significa essere cittadini più completi'" [Paola Antonelli: "Understanding the importance of design means being more complete citizens"]. Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  10. ^ a b McGee, Celia (27 January 2025). "Paola Antonelli's 'Pirouette' at MoMA Is an Ode to the Power of Design". Galerie Magazine. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  11. ^ Smith, Lilly (30 January 2025). "MoMA's Paola Antonelli on the groundbreaking designs that have changed humanity". Fast Company. Archived from the original on 16 February 2025. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  12. ^ "BIC Cristal Pen Featured in New MoMA Pirouette: Turning Points in Design Exhibition". BIC. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  13. ^ a b Antonelli, Paola (4 March 2015). "Is This for Everyone? New Design Acquisitions at MoMA". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 12 August 2025.
  14. ^ a b "Pirouette: Experiments and Turning Points in Design, MoMA, New York". DZEK Ltd. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  15. ^ a b c Hassani, Massoud (2011). "Mine Kafon wind-powered deminer". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 6 August 2025.
  16. ^ "MoMA exhibit features MSF's 'bracelet of life' for malnutrition diagnosis". Doctors Without Borders (USA). Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  17. ^ a b "'Pirouette: Turning Points in Design' exhibition at MoMA includes work by various Dutch designers". DutchCultureUSA. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  18. ^ a b "Milton Glaser's I ♥ NY sketch among design icons in MoMA show". Design Week. 27 January 2025. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  19. ^ Sanchez, Aranza (17 January 2025). "News | Pirouette at MoMA: Turning Points in Design". German Design Council. Retrieved 1 August 2025.
  20. ^ a b Baker, R.C. (28 February 2025). "Pirouette: From Paper Bags to Digital Ashes". The Village Voice. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  21. ^ Rosch, Carla (10 December 2023). "The coloured stripes that explain climate change". BBC News. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  22. ^ Heller, Steven (10 March 2025). "The Daily Heller: MoMA on Quintessential Design". PRINT Magazine. Retrieved 29 July 2025.
  23. ^ a b "Pirouette: Turning Points in Design 'Final Checklist'" (PDF). The Museum of Modern Art. November 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
  24. ^ a b "Tejo Remy. 'You Can't Lay Down Your Memory' Chest of Drawers. 1991". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 6 August 2025.
  25. ^ Remy, Tejo (1991), You Can't Lay Down Your Memory, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, retrieved 14 August 2025
  26. ^ a b Harrison, Charles. "View-master (model G). 1962". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
  27. ^ "Zanotta at the exhibition 'Pirouette: turning points in design'". Zanotta. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  28. ^ "Décolletage Plastique Design Team". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 1 August 2025.
  29. ^ Crook, Phillip (13 January 2025). "Professor Golan Levin's Work Featured in MoMA's 'Pirouette: Turning Points in Design'". Carnegie Mellon University. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  30. ^ The Free Universal Construction Kit (F.U.C.K.). Retrieved 30 July 2025 – via vimeo.com.
  31. ^ a b c d Volner, Ian (27 January 2025). "A New Exhibition at MoMA Showcases Change-Stimulating Design Objects". Architectural Record. Archived from the original on 16 Jul 2025. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
  32. ^ "Pirouette: Turning points in design". Meer. 6 August 2025. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  33. ^ a b "Pirouette Abecedarium". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 28 July 2025.
  34. ^ a b McGirt, Ellen (21 March 2025). "Design is at a turning point". Design Observer. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  35. ^ "In Memoriam: Celeste Bartos (1913–2013)". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 5 August 2025.
  36. ^ Antonelli, Paola; et al. (18 March 2025). Pirouette Abecedarium, The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 31 July 2025 – via YouTube.
  37. ^ Hassani, Massoud. "Exhibitions". Mine Kafon. Retrieved 11 August 2025.
  38. ^ Louis, Morris. "Morris Louis". Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 23 August 2025.
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