Award-winning British design
With the Victoria & Albert Museum finalising plans for its spring blockbuster British Design 1948-2012, the museum’s publishing division has released a small aperitif in the form of new book Award Winning British Design.
The book, authored by Lily Crowther, designed by Peter & Paul and published by V&A Publishing, concentrates on projects from 1957-1988 which won Design Council Awards.
In fact the awards scheme went under four names during its lifetime. It started out as Designs of the Year, before becoming the Design Centre Awards, the Council of Industrial Design Awards and finally the Design Council Awards.
Whatever its name though, the awards programme remained committed to recognising the commercial potential of good design and educating the consumer by identifying well-designed products.
So what you’re left with for the book is a greatest hits of three decades of British design, with obvious highlights including Robin Day’s stacking polypropylene chairs and Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert’s road-signs.
The earlier part of the collection is rather textile- and tableware-heavy, featuring some lovely Lucienne Day designs as well as ‘60s stereotype casserole dishes.
Juries in the 70s and 80s seemed to branch out a little more, giving awards to designs for skis, folding bicycles and the intriguing Microvision mini-TV from 1978.
Many of the award-winning designs were taken into the V&A’s collection, and will form the backbone of the British Design exhibition, which runs from 31 March-12 August.
Award Winning British Design 1957-1988, by Lily Crowther, is published by V&A Publishing priced at £14.99.
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what.s the name of that unconventional pair of uk designers who were always of tv about 15 years ago? one was fair haired and pony tailed with collarless shirts, something like Penn and Teller?
my name is jeff
my name is jeff