IDSA Honorary Members
Honorary IDSA Membership is awarded by a three-quarters majority vote
of the Board of Directors to any person whose relationship to, involvement
with, or special efforts on behalf of the design profession merit the
recognition and gratitude of the Society.
1965 - Edgar Kaufmann,
Jr. (1910-1989)
At IDSA's first annual conference, Mr. Kaufmann, Jr. received the "IDSA
Award for Distinguished Service to Design" (see IDSA
Special Awards). In 1970, IDSA decided to extend this award to include
"Honorary Membership" in IDSA.
1966 - R. Buckminster
Fuller (1895-1983)
At IDSA's second annual conference, Mr. Fuller received the "IDSA
Award of Achievement" (see IDSA
Special Awards). In 1970, IDSA decided to extend this award to include
"Honorary Membership" in IDSA.
1981 - Ray Kaiser
Eames (1916-1988)
At IDSA's annual conference in Los Angeles, California, Ray Eames was
awarded Honorary Membership by IDSA for her "Design innovation and
leadership" to the design profession as a design partner with her
husband, Charles Eames, who died in 1978. She trained as a painter with
Hans Hofmann (1880-1960) in the 1930's, had her work shown in 1936, and
was a founding member of the American Abstract Artists. She studied at
Cranbrook Academy from 1940 to 1941, where she met and married Charles
Eames and practiced with him as a graphic designer. Between 1942-1944,
she designed more than half the covers for the new magazine California
Arts and Architecture. Most importantly, she shared credit with her husband
for many of his famous designs.
1982 - Florence
Knoll Bassett (b. 1917)
At IDSA's annual conference in Orlando, Florida, Mrs. Bassett was awarded
Honorary Membership "in recognition of four decades of support for,
and contribution to, design." As co-founder of Knoll Associates in
1946, she established a company that, along with Herman Miller, pioneered
contemporary American furniture design in the ensuing decades. She was
trained in architecture and design at Cranbrook Academy, the Architectural
Association in London and at the Amour Institute in Chicago with Mies
van der Rohe. She commissioned many of her earlier school associates (including
Eero Saarinen, Harry Bertoia, Isamu Noguchi and Don Albinson) and put
into production the classic Bauhaus designs of Mies and Marcel Breuer.
In doing so, she revolutionized the office, unifying space planning, furniture,
office equipment, color and fabrics. The result was a new aesthetic for
furniture in contemporary spaces. In 1945 she had founded the Knoll Planning
Unit and in 1947 Knoll Textiles. When her husband, Hans Knoll died in
1955, she continued with the company until her retirement in 1965.
1983 Ralph Caplan
At its annual conference in Chicago, IDSA awarded Honorary Membership
to Mr. Caplan, design writer, critic and humorous commentator. He became
associate editor of Industrial Design Magazine in 1957. After leaving
the magazine in about 1963, he wrote for Charles and Ray Eames, The
Design of Herman Miller (1976), and, Connections (1977), a
monograph on their work. He co-authored The Design Necessity, Chair
(1973), and Design Matters (1970). In 1982, his book, By Design,
was published by St. Martin's Press and received warmly by the design
community for its wit, humor and insights into the design process. Mr.
Caplan received a Masters degree in creative writing from the University
of Indiana after writing poetry, then taught at Indiana University, Penn
State, and Wabash College in Indiana. He then went to New York to write
for a humor magazine, Bounty, before taking a position with ID
magazine. Ralph is an Emeritus Board Member of the International Design
Conference in Aspen, and has served as program director for their conferences.
1988 - Brian J.
Wynne
At its annual conference in New York, WORLDESIGN88, IDSA awarded Honorary
Membership to Mr. Wynne for "leadership and vision in building the
profession of industrial design and its Society". Wynne became IDSA's
Executive Director in 1977. He helped to triple membership, create a network
of 23 Chapters, increase income seven-fold and take IDSA from bankruptcy
to ownership of its own headquarters and prototype design center. He contributed
journals, publications, studies, exhibits, awards, scholarships, accreditation,
public relations and international programs that created a new level of
prestige for US design and its contribution to business success. After
leaving IDSA in 1988, Wynne continued his work as a writer, speaker and
seminar leader on issues related to organizational development, global
competition and design.
1998 - Bruce Nussbaum
At the IDEA ceremony at its annual conference in San Diego, IDSA awarded
Honorary Membership to Mr. Nussbaum for his role in Business Week's sponsorship
of the Industrial Design Excellence Awards (IDEA). In presenting the award
IDSA President Vogel cited "Business Week's commitment to
helping business make better use if design has done much to improve the
climate in which we work." Nussbaum began the series with a "Smart
Design" cover story in 1988, and for the last ten years Business
Week has annually featured the IDEA award winners, with detailed credits,
philosophies and descriptions with outstanding illustrations.
2004 - Vicki Matranga
At the IDEA ceremony at its annual conference in Pasadena, IDSA awarded
honorary membership to Vicki Matranga, design program coordinator of the
International Housewares Association (IHA) for her primary role over the
last 12 years in the conception and organization of the Design Oasis exhibit
at the annual National Hosewares Show and in the inception and annual
organization of the IHA student housewares design competition.