The Good Design exhibition series was an industrial design program organized by the Museum of Modern Art in New York, in cooperation with the Merchandise Mart in Chicago, held between 1950 and 1955. Despite common misconceptions, no formal awards were granted to designers whose work was put on view in these exhibitions, even though many contemporaries and historians often reference it as an award program.
The exhibition series was spearheaded by Edgar Kaufmann Jr, who served as the director of the Industrial Design Department of MoMA at the time. Predecessors to this landmark series included two other modernist design exhibition initiatives, such as a series that began with Useful Objects Under $5 and a series of international design competitions.
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SubscribeAn agreement to launch the Good Design exhibition series was struck between Rene d'Harnoncourt, director of MoMA, and Wallace O. Ollman, general manager of the Merchandise Mart. The collaborative program successfully executed five major editions during its active operational years.
The Museum of Modern Art developed a circular Good Design tag, designed by Morton and Millie Goldshol of Chicago, which manufacturers of products chosen for exhibition could use in advertising and sales. Prominent critics likened this iconic tag to a version of the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval, praising its role in promoting modernist design.
Legacy and Retrospective Exhibitions of Good Design
MoMA has continued to honor the legacy of this historical program by staging retrospective exhibitions in recent decades. Notable exhibitions include What Was Good Design in 2011 and The Value of Good Design in 2019.
Prominent figures associated with the program include graphic designer Joel Robinson, who exhibited at MoMA's 1951 Good Design show, and Florence Knoll, who was featured during the 1950 and 1953 editions. Their contributions helped cement the cultural footprint of industrial design in mid-century America.
It is also worth noting that other global institutions, such as the Japan Institute of Design Promotion, sponsor an annual Good Design Award which remains entirely unrelated to the historical American program established by MoMA.
The enduring influence of the Good Design initiative continues to be studied by design historians and enthusiasts worldwide. Scholars frequently analyze its impact on commercial manufacturing and consumer culture during the post-war era.