An essential new look at the design philosophy that interrogated modern living against the turbulent political landscape of 1960s ItalyIn the mid-1960s, reacting to contemporary social and political upheaval, young Italian architects and designers began developing a new style that openly challenged Modernism. Known as “Radical design,” this movement probed possibilities for visually transforming the urban environment. Radical design’s proponents also applied it to items such as furniture and lighting, utilizing alternative materials and an innovative formal vocabulary. Radical: Italian Design 1965–1985 surveys the work of these pioneering designers through nearly 70 objects and architectural models—including rare prototypes and limited-production pieces. Cindi Strauss insightfully explores the aesthetic inspiration and changing cultural mores that informed the movement, and her research is complemented by an essay from Germano Celant, the acclaimed author and curator who coined the term “Radical design.” Importantly, the book includes seven interviews with Radical designers and architects, offering fresh insights into the individuals who were at the vanguard of this groundbreaking movement.Published in association with the Museum of Fine Arts, HoustonExhibition Schedule:Museum of Fine Arts, Houston(February 14–April 26, 2020)Yale School of Architecture Gallery(September 3–November 20, 2021)

An unprecedented survey of modern lighting design foregrounding its materials, innovators, and far-reaching influenceOffering the first comprehensive history of lighting design from the 20th and 21st centuries, Electrifying Design: A Century of Lighting explores how lighting has been integral to the development of modern design both in terms of aesthetics and technological advances. This fascinating book outlines the key aspects of lighting as a unique and creative artistic discipline and examines themes such as different typologies, the quality of light, and the evolution of the bulb. A series of essays by Sarah Schleuning and Cindi Strauss showcase lighting designs from different time periods and geographic locations and feature the work of significant figures, including Poul Henningsen, Ingo Maurer, and Gino Sarfatti. With over 130 illustrations of functional and sometimes fantastical designs, a historical timeline, and comprehensive artist biographies, this handsome volume expands our understanding of an understudied but influential art form and demonstrates lighting’s central role as both an expression of and a catalyst for innovations in modern and contemporary design.Published in association with the Museum of Fine Arts, HoustonExhibition Schedule:Museum of Fine Arts, Houston(February 21–May 16, 2021)High Museum of Art, Atlanta(July 2–September 26, 2021)

Going Underground: The Jewels of Bernhard Schobinger examines the groundbreaking jewellery of this renowned Swiss avant-garde artist.Schobinger uses scavenged and alternative materials to reimagine jewellery as a subversive medium, harnessing its potential to reveal hidden layers of history. This strikingly illustrated catalogue features more than 50 pivotal pieces of experimental jewellery, tracing the artist’s radical career, including his aesthetic inspirations in Dadaism and Concrete art, his Swiss cultural inheritance, and his abiding interest in Japanese culture.This publication places Schobinger’s work in critical dialogue with the vast political and cultural forces that have informed it, from the long shadow of World War II to the anarchy of the punk underground and beyond.

An essential new look at the design philosophy that interrogated modern living against the turbulent political landscape of 1960s ItalyIn the mid-1960s, reacting to contemporary social and political upheaval, young Italian architects and designers began developing a new style that openly challenged Modernism. Known as “Radical design,” this movement probed possibilities for visually transforming the urban environment. Radical design’s proponents also applied it to items such as furniture and lighting, utilizing alternative materials and an innovative formal vocabulary. Radical: Italian Design 1965–1985 surveys the work of these pioneering designers through nearly 70 objects and architectural models—including rare prototypes and limited-production pieces. Cindi Strauss insightfully explores the aesthetic inspiration and changing cultural mores that informed the movement, and her research is complemented by an essay from Germano Celant, the acclaimed author and curator who coined the term “Radical design.” Importantly, the book includes seven interviews with Radical designers and architects, offering fresh insights into the individuals who were at the vanguard of this groundbreaking movement.Published in association with the Museum of Fine Arts, HoustonExhibition Schedule:Museum of Fine Arts, Houston(February 14–April 26, 2020)Yale School of Architecture Gallery(September 3–November 20, 2021)

An unprecedented survey of modern lighting design foregrounding its materials, innovators, and far-reaching influenceOffering the first comprehensive history of lighting design from the 20th and 21st centuries, Electrifying Design: A Century of Lighting explores how lighting has been integral to the development of modern design both in terms of aesthetics and technological advances. This fascinating book outlines the key aspects of lighting as a unique and creative artistic discipline and examines themes such as different typologies, the quality of light, and the evolution of the bulb. A series of essays by Sarah Schleuning and Cindi Strauss showcase lighting designs from different time periods and geographic locations and feature the work of significant figures, including Poul Henningsen, Ingo Maurer, and Gino Sarfatti. With over 130 illustrations of functional and sometimes fantastical designs, a historical timeline, and comprehensive artist biographies, this handsome volume expands our understanding of an understudied but influential art form and demonstrates lighting’s central role as both an expression of and a catalyst for innovations in modern and contemporary design.Published in association with the Museum of Fine Arts, HoustonExhibition Schedule:Museum of Fine Arts, Houston(February 21–May 16, 2021)High Museum of Art, Atlanta(July 2–September 26, 2021)

Going Underground: The Jewels of Bernhard Schobinger examines the groundbreaking jewellery of this renowned Swiss avant-garde artist.Schobinger uses scavenged and alternative materials to reimagine jewellery as a subversive medium, harnessing its potential to reveal hidden layers of history. This strikingly illustrated catalogue features more than 50 pivotal pieces of experimental jewellery, tracing the artist’s radical career, including his aesthetic inspirations in Dadaism and Concrete art, his Swiss cultural inheritance, and his abiding interest in Japanese culture.This publication places Schobinger’s work in critical dialogue with the vast political and cultural forces that have informed it, from the long shadow of World War II to the anarchy of the punk underground and beyond.