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| Furniture Society | |
|---|---|
| Name | Furniture Society |
| Formation | 1989 |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Headquarters | High Point, North Carolina |
| Region served | International |
| Leader title | Executive Director |
Furniture Society The Furniture Society is a professional nonprofit organization dedicated to the craft, design, study, and appreciation of furniture. Founded in 1989, it brings together makers, designers, educators, curators, collectors, and institutions to promote innovation, scholarship, and community within the fields of studio furniture and industrial practice. The Society operates through conferences, publications, awards, exhibitions, and regional chapters to connect practitioners across the United States, Canada, Europe, and Asia.
The organization emerged from networks among studio practitioners associated with institutions such as Rhode Island School of Design, Cranbrook Academy of Art, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Ohio State University. Early gatherings included participants from workshops led by figures connected to Walt Disney Imagineering, Knoll, Herman Miller, George Nakashima, and museums like the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Founding members drew on traditions from craft schools including Penland School of Craft, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Center for Furniture Craftsmanship, and Anderson Ranch Arts Center. Over decades the Society intersected with professional organizations such as American Craft Council, Crafts Council (UK), Society of American Period Furniture Makers, Blacksmithing Association of North America, and academic programs at Parsons School of Design and Pratt Institute. Major milestones included partnerships with collectors, galleries, and museums like Garth Clark Gallery, Yamamoto Gallery, Cooper Hewitt, and regional arts councils.
The Society’s mission emphasizes professional development, historical research, and public engagement, aligning with institutions like Smithsonian American Art Museum, Victoria and Albert Museum, Art Institute of Chicago, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and National Endowment for the Arts. Activities involve collaborations with grantmakers such as Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Walton Family Foundation, Guggenheim Foundation, and municipal arts agencies including New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and Arts Council England. The organization convenes dialogues that include curators from Walker Art Center, educators from School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and designers from firms such as IKEA, Muuto, and Fritz Hansen.
Annual conferences rotate through host cities and venues, often partnering with institutions including High Point Market, Carnegie Museum of Art, Helsinki Design Week, Salone del Mobile, Venice Biennale, and university galleries at University of Michigan Museum of Art and Columbia University’s Avery Hall. Exhibitions curated in association with galleries such as Sperone Westwater, Mendes Wood DM, and David Zwirner have showcased work alongside collections from Cooper Hewitt, Peabody Essex Museum, and Mint Museum. Key conference programming has featured speakers affiliated with Design Museum London, Royal College of Art, Cooper Union, Yale School of Art, and independent curators from Hayden Gallery and The Fabric Workshop and Museum.
The Society publishes journals, catalogs, and monographs that have been distributed to libraries and archives including Library of Congress, New York Public Library, British Library, and university presses like University of Pennsylvania Press and MIT Press. Publications have documented scholarship on makers exhibited by galleries such as Paul S. Taylor Gallery and museums like Brooklyn Museum and Museum of Arts and Design. Awards administered by the Society have honored makers who have appeared in exhibitions at Tate Modern, Centre Pompidou, and recipients associated with prizes like the MacArthur Fellowship, Guggenheim Fellowship, and American Craft Council Gold Medal. The organization also produces catalogs for traveling shows held at venues such as Renwick Gallery and Baltimore Museum of Art.
Membership includes individuals and institutions drawn from networks including Crafts Council (UK), Society of North American Goldsmiths, Textile Society of America, Association of Woodworking & Furnishings Suppliers, and university departments at California College of the Arts, Virginia Commonwealth University, and University of Wisconsin–Madison. Regional chapters organize events in metropolitan areas such as New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, London, and Berlin. Institutional members encompass galleries like Pace Gallery, museums like Art Gallery of Ontario, and design centers such as Design Museum and Cooper Hewitt.
Educational programming includes workshops, residencies, and seminars held in partnership with workshops and schools such as Penland School of Craft, School of Visual Arts, Maryland Institute College of Art, Carnegie Mellon University, University of the Arts London, and craft centers including Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts and Haystack Mountain School of Crafts. Outreach initiatives connect with community organizations like Americans for the Arts, Local Initiatives Support Corporation, and cultural festivals including Maker Faire and Design Festa. The Society’s pedagogical collaborations have contributed to curricula at institutions such as Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Massachusetts College of Art and Design.
Notable members and contributors have included makers, designers, and scholars with ties to figures and institutions such as George Nakashima, Sam Maloof, Wharton Esherick, Greta Magnusson Grossman, J.K. Gill, Jasper Morrison, Shiro Kuramata, Isamu Noguchi, Eileen Gray, Charlotte Perriand, Marcel Breuer, Charles and Ray Eames, Hans Wegner, Arne Jacobsen, Le Corbusier, Frank Lloyd Wright, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Alvar Aalto, Waldo S. Lydecker, Daniel Pollack-Pelzner, J. B. Blunk, T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Sam Maloof’s workshop affiliates, and curators associated with Garth Clark and Seth Papac-led exhibitions. The Society’s community has contributed works acquired by collections at Metropolitan Museum of Art, Victoria and Albert Museum, Tate Britain, Brooklyn Museum, Cooper Hewitt, and corporate collections at Googleplex and Microsoft Redmond Campus.
Category:Organizations established in 1989