Nora's Notables - Part II

NYSID Archivist Nora Reilly shares three of her latest finds from the NYSID Archives: a collection of alumni business cards from the 1940s and 50s, student work from the 90s, and a selection of old faculty lecture notes.

1940's and 1950's Business Cards: The NYSID Archives holds an impressive collection of business cards from the 1940s and 1950s.  Alumni would often send in their cards to keep the school updated about their employment. Not only do the cards show where NYSID alums were getting hired, but they also show what types of jobs were available to interior designers at that time.  While many alumni opened up their own firms, others were hired by department stores, such as Miss Polly Puckett (shown left); whose card advertises her NYSID credentials as well as her services as in-store interior designer at Bry’s Department Store (located in Memphis, Tennessee, and closed since 1964).

Student Work: Lamps, 1992: These models of lamps, made by NYSID students Nana Hirata and Irene Laleuf in 1992, are wonderful displays of both model-making skills and interior lighting design principles. They were made for the Visual Principles class and were included in a promotional brochure as examples of student work.  The brochure described NYSID’s curriculum as a combination of the “history of the decorative arts and architecture with design theory and practice covering the entire range of design concerns – from interior space planning, to the selection of furniture, lighting, color, textiles, art work, and accessories."

Sherill Whiton's Lecture Notes: The Archives is fortunate to have many of NYSID founder Sherrill Whiton’s lecture notes from his tenure as both NYSID director and faculty member from 1916-1961.  Whiton was a prolific speaker, both as a faculty member and as a guest speaker for organizations in and around New York City. These particular notes are for a lecture on “Style Development in the U.S.A,” and cover the major periods and styles from Colonial to Modern movement as expressed by Frank Lloyd Wright and Walter Gropius. In his notes he poses the question, “Will period features continue?” He points out that the Modernist design is “organic – form follows function”, it is based on “natural evolution” and “not preconceived."