NEW YORK 20TH CENTURY ART AND DESIGN FAIR

NEW YORK 20TH CENTURY ART AND DESIGN FAIR HONORS AMERICAN DESIGN PIONEER PAUL McCOBB IN A SPECIAL EXHIBITION CURATED BY GERARD O'BRIEN

Henry Dreyfuss, Eliot Noyes and Raymond Loewy-these are names of design virtuosos who justly find themselves on center stage (and even on U.S. postage stamps). Another American designer whose name has recently come into the spotlight is Paul McCobb, who at last gets his due in a special exhibition, showcasing his seminal and highly influential designs, at the NYC 20 Art and Design Fair, April 13-15 at the Tent in Lincoln Center. 

McCobb Executive Chair 

Curated by Gerard O'Brien, of the Los Angeles- based Reform Gallery in association with Jonathan Goldstein, this museum-caliber exhibition, which occupies an entire booth, is the first of its kind in New York dedicated to McCobb. Born in 1917, the designer rose to prominence while still in his early 30s through association with New York City's Modern Furniture, and in the 1960s launched his own hugely popular furniture line. A believer in creating affordable design,   McCobb deployed his talents to re-think design for wallpapers, fabrics, lighting, glassware, ceramics, and even typewriters. He also designed hi-fi consoles and television sets that became fixtures in Leave It to Beaver-like households during the Baby Boomer years.

McCobb's association with television and furniture is  manifested in a uniquely historical way. For the nation's first network morning news program - The Today Show - McCob designed a set that was unveiled in 1952 and got continuous coast-to-coast exposure into the 1960s. With its floor-to-ceiling wire-glass-and-steel newspaper rack and furniture from Knoll and Herman Miller, the set clearly communicated McCobb's fluency in up-to-the-minute mid-century design-while also whetting a telegenic appetite for mid-century design in millions of aspirational Americans. The importance that McCobb's Today set had in parking a fever for mid-century design cannot really be overstated.

Here are some photos of the Show...