Edward J Wormley papers KA.0048

Transcription

1 Edward J Wormley papers KA.0048 This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit August 30, 2012 Describing Archives: A Content Standard Kellen Design Archives January 12, th Ave./ lobby level/ New York, NY, archivist@newschool.edu

2 Table of Contents Collection Overview... 2 Biographical note... 3 Scope and Contents of Collection... 4 Organization and Arrangement... 5 Administrative Information... 5 Related Materials... 5 Keywords for Searching Related Subjects... 5 Collection Inventory... 6 Series I. Personal... 6 Series II. Professional... 6 Collection Overview Repository Kellen Design Archives Creator Wormley, Edward J., Title Edward J Wormley papers Date [inclusive] circa Extent 19.2 linear ft: 6 boxes, 2 oversize folders, 5 tubes Language English Abstract Designer for the Dunbar Furniture Company for more than three decades, Edward J Wormley ( ) was a major modernist furniture designer and a Parsons School of Design visiting lecturer. His work was recognized in the 1950s by the Museum of Modern Art, which featured Wormley s - Page 2 -

3 designs in its Good Design exhibitions. Wormley taught at Parsons between 1952 and The Kellen Design Archives' collection spans the years 1908 to 1991, and includes photographs, biographical materials, typescripts for articles and speeches, technical drawings, Dunbar catalogs, and several original sketches. Biographical note Furniture designer and interior decorator, Edward J Wormley, was born to Edith and M. J. Wormley in Oswego, Illinois in After graduating from high school in 1926, Wormley attended the Art Institute of Chicago, but left school after three terms to begin his professional career at Marshall Fields Design Studios and their quality furniture supplier Berkey & Gay in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In 1931, when Depression-era cutbacks left Wormley unemployed, he traveled to Europe, where he developed a lifelong love for traveling and self-study. Upon his return, Wormley was introduced to Homer Neiderhauser, president of the Indiana-based Dunbar Furniture Company, who was looking for a new designer to upgrade the production quality of Dunbar's furniture. Wormley, only 23 years old, was given the position. Eventually he became Dunbar s sole designer, a partnership that would last for nearly forty years. During World War II, Wormley left Dunbar to hold a government position with the Furniture Unit of the Office of Price Administration. He returned to Dunbar in 1944, this time as an independent consultant, an arrangement that enabled him to move to New York City and establish his own design studio. For the next decade, Wormley designed carpets, textiles, cabinets, and other products for a roster of clients, all the while continuing as head designer for Dunbar. Wormley and Dunbar continued to gain recognition in the design world, and in 1954 Wormley signed exclusively with Dunbar. Wormley is often cited as one the most influential designers of mid-20th century, modern American furniture. A number of his designs were featured in the 1950, 1951 and 1952 Good Design exhibits at the Museum of Modern Art, one of several museums to hold Wormley furniture in their collections. A 1961 article in Playboy magazine places Wormley alongside leading designers Charles Eames, George Nelson and Eero Saarinen. The article quotes Wormley on Modernism: Modernism means freedom to mix, to choose, to change, to embrace the new but to hold fast to what is good." In 1967, after receiving numerous awards and accolades and still at the height of his career, Wormley retired from design and moved to Weston, Connecticut with his partner, Edward Crouse. Although retired, Wormley continued to lecture and serve as a visiting critic at Parsons School of Design until the late 1960s, and was awarded an honorary doctorate from the school in Wormley and Crouse traveled extensively, their last trip together occurring in 1975, the year of Crouse's death from cancer. Edward J Wormley died in Connecticut on November 3, 1995 at the age of Page 3 -

4 Selected sources: Edward J Wormley papers KA.0048 Gura, Judith, Chris Kennedy, Larry Weinberg, eds. Edward Wormley: The Other Face of Modernism. North Hampton, MA: DESIGNbase, Lin-Weinberg Gallery, Kaufmann, Edgar, Jr. The Dunbar Book of Contemporary Furniture. Berne, IN: Dunbar Corporation, Streett, Sara. "Guide to the Edward J Wormley and Edward Crouse papers, (bulk )." Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, Cornell University Library, Accessed January 2, 2011, Scope and Contents of Collection The Edward J Wormley papers include awards, biographical materials, drawings and sketches, photographic materials, plans, printed materials, and typescripts. The papers are divided into two series based upon whether materials are of a personal or a professional nature, with professional materials comprising a larger percentage of the collection. The Personal series includes a Wormley family tree, numerous family photographs, a pencil sketch of Wormley by an unidentified artist, and floor plans of his East Ontario Street, Chicago and Campanile [East 52nd Street, New York] apartments. Many of the photographs are annotated, and include pets as well as humans. Two photographs of houses belonging to the Wormley family are also present. Although the earliest photograph dates from approximately 1908, many other family photographs are undated and may be older. The Professional series is divided between materials produced by or for the Dunbar furniture company and professional materials either created independently of Wormley's affiliation with Dunbar, or of unclear provenance. This latter sub-series includes awards and citations; blueprints and design drawings dating to 1928 when Wormley was employed by Marshall Fields department store as well as plans for furnishings for textile designer Jack Lenor Larsen made in the 1980s; a small number of furniture sketches; two original interior design renderings, one signed by Wormley; photographs of furniture as well as portraits created for publicity purposes; and writings on design. Writings, which predominantly date from the late 1950s to the late 1960s, primarily consist of typed lecture notes, many with editorial markings, and articles for professional and arts-related organizations and publications. Of note are several drafts and notecards for a presentation titled "Let's Explore Inner Space" (1961) in which Wormley applies Freudian theory to the activity of collecting. Other materials include a program for a dinner honoring Ludwig Mies van der Rohe shorty after he immigrated to the United States. The Dunbar sub-series is primarily comprised of photographs depicting residential and office furniture; bound sales catalogs and publications; portfolios of Dunbar furniture collections; and materials related to Dunbar's publicity activities, including clippings, a portfolio of magazine advertisements, a press release, and sheet music for a 1930 song, "March Dunbar." - Page 4 -

5 Organization and Arrangement Organized in 2 series: I Personal, circa II Professional, Administrative Information Publication Information Kellen Design Archives January 12, 2011 Use Restrictions To publish images of material from this collection, permission must be obtained in writing from the Kellen Design Archives. Please contact: archivist@newschool.edu. Related Materials Cornell University holds the Edward J Wormley and Edward Crouse Papers, (bulk ). The Museum of Fine Arts Houston Archives holds a large photographic archive amassed by Wormley. Keywords for Searching Related Subjects Corporate Name(s) Dunbar Furniture Company. Genre(s) Catalogs. Clippings (information artifacts). Drawings. Floor plans. Photographs. Sketches. - Page 5 -

6 Slides (photographs). Typescripts. Edward J Wormley papers KA.0048 Personal Name(s) Crouse, Edward C. Subject(s) Chairs -- Catalogs. Furniture design -- United States -- 20th century -- Pictorial works. Furniture designers. Furniture -- Catalogs. Interior decoration. Office furniture -- United States -- 20th century -- Pictorial works. Collection Inventory Series I. Personal circa , undated Family tree, Pencil portrait of Wormley, undated 1 1 Photographs General, circa Contact sheets of building exterior may depict Campanile Apartments in New York City. Childhood, circa Apartment in New York City, 1965 k_osx-4 1 Donations to the Museum of Decorative Arts of Montreal, Portraits of Edward Crouse and William Pahlmann, 1930s-1940s 1 5 Wormley family, , 1947, undated Plans for apartments, before 1944 and after 1947 These plans may represent the building depicted in contact sheets in the Personal series under Photographs: General. Series II. Professional General k_osx-4 2 k_osx Page 6 -

7 Awards and citations, Awards and citations: Elsie de Wolfe Award and 1 11 correspondence, 1962 k_osx-4 3 Awards and citations: Parsons School of Design honorary doctorate, Title Hive Tube Blueprints and design drawings: Jack Lenor Larsen, Inc., temp The work rolled and stored in Hive A comprises five original design plans, as well as blueprint reproductions of these plans, documenting two different designs for a set of matching side and armchairs; and ideas for a set of nesting tables. Blueprints and design drawings: Marshall Fields, 1928 k_osxx-2 6 Earlier works completed as an employee of Marshall Field's. MC C 1 1 Clippings from House Beautiful, 1945 Mar 5 3 Furniture sketches, Photographs 1920s-1980s 1 12 k_osx-4 4 D.L. James house [Carmel, California], Furniture: Prints, undated 1 14 Furniture: Slides, Furniture: Transparencies and glass plates, undated 1 16 g1 2-4 g2 1-2 Portraits, 1930s, , undated Wormley with others, undated 1 20 Program for Mies van der Rohe dinner, Renderings, 1945, 1965, undated k_osx-4 6 Statements about Wormley and his work, 1953, Writings Page 7 -

8 Undated "Let's Explore Inner Space," "Design Strategies for Survival," Dunbar Photographs: Executive offices and showrooms, Photographs: Furniture, undated Photographs: Portraits, undated 2 11 Printed materials Bound publications Dunbar: A Comprehensive Collection of Upholstered 2 12 and Wood Pieces for All Use, 1941 Dunbar for Modern, The Dunbar Book of Modern Furniture, The Dunbar Book of Contemporary Furniture, Janus Collection, 1957; The Dunbar Story, circa Sales catalogs 1940s-1960s Hampton & Baltimore Group, circa Office furniture, circa Office furniture, circa 1960s 3 3 Residential furniture, circa 1960s 3 4 Today and Tomorrow collection: Catalog, Today and Tomorrow Collection: Photographs for House Beautiful, Numbered series, undated 400s s s s s s Page 8 -

9 Sofas and chairs 4 2 Benches, tables, and cabinets 4 3 Dining room, bedroom, and index 4 4 Dunbar Compatibles catalog Publicity 1950s-1960s Clippings: Clippings: Portfolio of magazine advertisements 4 14 Press release and translation of German article, 1950, Sheet music for "March Dunbar," Page 9 -