Upcoming: Dine & Tell. Let's have dinner together. 20 November 2024 in Zurich

Direct exchange among NDG members is paramount. We will meet at Restaurant Viadukt and exchange views on what has moved us as design historians and beyond in the past year. The format 'Dine & Tell' combines such exchange with a dinner. Number of places are limited.

Date: Wednesday, 20 November, 6.30 p.m.
Location: Restaurant Viadukt, Viaduktstrasse 69/72, 8005 Zurich
Binding registration: until 15 November.

Guided tour and talk in the exhibition Eleonore Peduzzi Riva: designer, architetto e consulente, 10 October 2024 in Riehen

In 2023, Eleonore Peduzzi Riva was awarded the Grand Prix Design by the Federal Office of Culture. As an art director and interior architect, she shaped the corporate identity of many companies. Her Milan studio has existed since the 1960s, which Matylda Krzykowski researched for staging the materials in the exhibition at Kunstraum Riehen. The curator gave us an exclusive tour of the exhibition, followed by a public discussion with Eleonore Peduzzi Riva, NDG board member Ariana Pradal, Archiv Innenarchitektur Schweiz, and Matylda Krzykowski, curator.

Venue: Kunst Raum Riehen, Baselstrasse 71, Riehen
Date: 10 October, guided tour: 5 pm, discussion 6 pm

Show & Tell in the Zigi Rauschenberg fashion archive by Sophie Grossmann, 4 September 2024 in Zürich

In 2020, art historian and NDG member Sophie Grossmann founded the private fashion archive Zigi Rauschenberg with collector's items from the late 19th and early 20th century.
As an avid collector of vintage dresses, her private collection has grown considerably over the past ten years and now includes many rare couture pieces that are shown in museums or serve as objects of study.

Research Swiss Game Design History, 24 June 2024, 6 pm in Zurich

For decades, digital games were programmed in Switzerland in niches, but also with commercial success. They bear witness to many sub-scenes and a society changing through digitization. Eugen Pfister and Adrian Demleitner provided an exclusive insight into the research project Confederatio Ludens, which explores this largely ignored games industry from 1968 to 2000 and thus contributes to preserving a highly ephemeral and disappearing cultural heritage.

Show & Tell with Simone Gugger, 4 June 2024 in Zurich

NDG member and jewellery designer Simone Gugger celebrated her 20th anniversary this year. She presented a retrospective of her work, exhibitions and publications in her studio.

NDG+ History of Arab Graphic Design, 28 May 2024

The history of Arabic graphic design is rich. But how do you write a story about a field that has so far been widely neglected in global design historiography? In NDG+ online section, the co-author Haytham Nawar gives us an exclusive insight into the background of a book project that opens up a chapter of design history that has barely been explored.

Visit Therma Schaulager, 20 April 2024

Therma, a factory for electrical appliances, quickly developed from its headquarters in 1907 into a company with a worldwide reputation. It existed independently until 1978 when it was absorbed into the Electrolux Group. The archive is now being developed into a showroom, and a book on the history and development of Therma products is in the works. Both recall a memorable chapter in Swiss design history, the energy centre of which was the village of Schwanden for a century. After the Therma Schaulager we visited the Schätti metal goods factory.

5th General Assembly, 22 March 2024 @ Gewerbemuseum Winterthur

Our General Assembly took place at Gewerbemuseum Winterthur on invitation of our member director Susanna Kumschick. A guided tour of the Perfectly Imperfect exhibition and an insight into the new show Blood & Dust–When Residues Become Materials by member Franziska Müller-Reissmann kicked off our General Assembly. Afterwards we went for dinner at Restaurant Molino.

NDG+ Gesellschaft für Designgeschichte, 4 March 2024

What is the status of design history in Germany? How does the GfDg link research with practice, and what does cooperation with museums, universities, and archives entail? Board members Kilian Steiner and Thilo Schwer discussed networking in design history matters with us, gave tips and explained what it takes (in German).

Talk: Appearance and decay, 1 February 2024

The surface shows what shines or what has lost its lustre. But surfaces also fullfil a function and are far more than just a beautiful appearance. The discussion in the Gewerbemuseum Winterthur about design, craftsmanship, restoration and art explores how deep the surface of things is—chaired by NDG board member Meret Ernst, Susanne Graner, Head of Collection and Archive, Vitra Design Museum; NDG board member Mónica Gaspar, lecturer, freelance curator and author; Noelani Rutz, designer; and Frédéric Dedelley, designer.

Show & Tell with Sabina Tenti about Martha Huber-Villiger, 24 January 2024

NDG board member Sabina Tenti has worked on the estate of interior architect and designer Martha Huber-Villiger. She was Charlotte Perriand's employee in her Paris studio in 1952. Together with Jean Prouvé, they developed the furniture types Equipment d'habitation. A ten-month stay in Japan with Perriand had a lasting impact on Martha Villiger's work. We learn this and much more when we look at her estate, which is kept at the gta Archives at ETH Zurich.

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