George Nelson & Co., Inc. Records, 1948-1968, bulk 1957-1968

Summary

Creator:
George Nelson & Co., Inc.
Abstract:
Design descriptions and illustrations (1957-1968) and design tracings and drawings (1948-1968) of the American industrial and interior design firm.
Extent:
5.0 linear ft. (2 doc boxes and 17 tubes of rolled drawings)
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

George Nelson & Co., Inc. Records,

Background

Scope and content:

The George Nelson & Co., Inc. Records are divided into three series.

A small amount of Descriptive material about George Nelson and George Nelson & Co. is filed at the beginning of the collection.

Design descriptions and illustrations consist of photographs and printed descriptions of various industrial and interior designs by George Nelson & Co., Inc. These include offices, Herman Miller furniture, a United States Information Agency industrial design exhibit sent to the Soviet Union, and storage and module systems.

Design tracings consist of original drawings of Herman Miller furniture, offices, stores, a medical clinic, a ladder, showrooms, a traveling exhibit, a large number of clocks, a city hall, and other items.

Biographical / historical:

George Nelson (1908-1986) was an American writer, lecturer, teacher and designer. He is considered one of the founders of American Modernism, along with Charles and Ray Eames.

Although formally trained in architecture, over his career Nelson became known as a furniture designer, industrial designer, interior designer and exhibition designer. He was also an excellent writer and reporter; his series of interviews in the mid-1930s of important European designers (including Walter Gropius, Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier, and Gio Ponti) was published in Pencil Points and led to a position as an editorial staff writer at Architectural Forum. By 1945 he had become co-managing editor of the magazine. After World War II he began a forty-year association with the Herman Miller furniture company. His own company had a client list of Fortune 500 companies and Nelson continued to write, lecture, travel and design throughout.

[Portions of this biographical sketch adapted from "George Nelson," an essay appearing on the website of the American Institute for Graphic Arts.]

Acquisition information:

Bulk, gift of George Nelson & Co., Inc. , 1968.

Bruce Davidson photographs of sling sofa, gift of Ron Beckmann , 2011.

Arrangement:

All material is arranged within each series alphabetically by folder title.

Access and use

Restrictions:

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Terms of access:

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Preferred citation:

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

George Nelson & Co., Inc. Records,

Location of this collection:
Special Collections Research Center
Syracuse University Libraries
Bird Library, Room 600
Syracuse, NY 13244, United States
Link to repository site
Contact:
315.443.2697
scrc@syr.edu