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Pioneering the Alliance of Art and Industry: The Toledo Museum of Artt Excerpts from The Alliance of Art and Industry Toledo Designs for a Modern America Julie A. McMaster and Davira S. Taragin In 1888 Edward Drummond Libbey chose Toledo as the new location of his New England glass factory, not only because of the natural gas and high silica content of the rock from area quarries, but also because the town had amenities that promised a good lifestyle. Infl uence by the Chicago Arts and Crafts reformer Frank W. Gunsaulus. Libbey felt strongly that industry had to do more for the community than merely provide jobs for workers. In the spirit of his conviction, he established the Toledo Museum of Art in 1901. Twenty-one years later, in an address at the Sorbonne in Paris, Libbey state that his philosophy concerning the purpose of an American museum was “to bring to our citizens the understanding of the principles and the benefi ts of art in their lives and in their work. To this end our museums of art have within the past few years become active educational institutions., as well as safe and necessary repositories of art.” From this early, broad defi nition of the museum, Libbey and the museum staff developed over the ensuing years a practical application of integrating art into life. The Toledo Museum’s philosophy and practice ultimately contributed to America’s nationwide interest in well-designed industrial objects during the fi rst part of the twentieth century. The potential for interaction between the Toledo Museum and local industries wax evident as early as 1911 when Robert M. Corl, a staff designer at Libbey Glass Works, wrote an article for the Toledo Times encouraging workers to avail themselves of the museum’s resources: To anyone working in industrial art, especially in the fi eld of design, a museum is a necessity, and to not take advantage of the large library and the Toledo Museum of Art Studio Glass Workshop, 1962, Elaine Lukasik Adding a Ladle to a Piece well-arranged collections is a very grave mistake for anyone who wishes to thoroughly understand his work, as it contains a record of the best which had been done in the past, and this is an absolute necessity for the production of good work in the future… In this industrial age success means knowledge, and anyone needing help along the lines of applied art will fi nd material at the Toledo museum, of which they should not fail to take advantage. Although Corl’s words indicate support and appreciation for what the museum had to offer, Libbey in the fi rst prominent director of the museum, George W Stephens, we’re interested in a more aggressive educational program for the institution, one that would lead to “art entering into every human activity. Into the making of our homes in the building of our cities Dash into every product of the manufacturer, and into every detail of merchandising.” Paragraph 1915 the active implementation of this alliance between Toledo zoo or community and its industries had become. First, in order to encourage interaction between the museum and the labor force in Toledo, maybe prompt and the trustees to create a new class of membership to benefi t the workmen and craftsman, in hopes that it would spark their interest in the museum and then list their fi - nancial assistance. Then, three years later, the Toledo Museum of Art and the Toledo Board of Education join I created a school of design. Its purpose was not only to cultivate those students who are exceptional talent in art but also to bring art into the life of the average person. Paragraph the fi rst school of design classes were based on a combination of educators and art theories Denman Ross and Arthur Pope’s system of design theory. Ross is philosophy of uniting harmony, rhythm, and balance to create an ordered composition was combined with pokes elaboration on a Ross concept, advocating the sequential repetition of a form with only minor modifi cation. As a result, the primary philosophy of design behind the museums classes promoted a union of r repetitive elements, sequence, and balance to create a unifi ed composition. Breaking Patterns Libbey Glass in the Twentieth Century The story of the designer at Toledo zoo Libbey glass parallels in many ways the evolution of design in America from largely a trade to a professional activity. Libbys renowned rich cut glass of the late 19th and early 20th Century’s was primarily a product of a skilled craftsmen. The decline in popularity of this type of class during the second decade of the 20th century that the company to supplement its luxury, Handmade objects for the home with low cost machine made where’s for the industrial market, mainly during the 1920s. But the 1930s competitive pressures forced Libby to adopt some of the most progressive measures the time to create well designed products for American consumers. However, Libbey’s most distinguishing role in the history of the design profession is it’s 47-year relationship with the New York-based industrial designer and home furnishings consultant Freda Diamond. Beginning in 1941, Diamond let Libbey into a clearly defi ned program of well-designed machine-made tableware for middle-class America, placing Libbey in the enviable position of defi ning the look of modern America and helping establish the role of women in industrial design. Libbey glass, today America’s leadToledo Scales Company, 1932 and pedestals, all of which were cited for “the great boldness and elaborate elaboration of design and high-class execution.” Libbey Studios, Syncopation Pattern, 1932 ing manufacturer of machine-made glassware, was founded in 1818 as the New England glass company of East Cambridge, Massachusetts. Known during its early years for high quality blown, and engraved where is for the Home WL Libby and some company, New England glassworks moved to Toledo Ohio in 1888 after declining sales, the high cost of fuel, and labor diffi culties forest is proprietor, Edward Drummond Libbey visit several American cities in search of natural gas, labor, and good transportation facilities. The renamed Libbey glass company achieved international recognition for its cut glass through promotional schemes at the Chicago 1893 Columbian exposition in the 1904 Louisiana purchase exposition. At the former, for instance, the pharmacy particular commendations for its cut glass clocks, banquet lamps, candelabra, The technological revolution glassmaking that Libby plant superintendent Michael J. Owens began in the 1890s with the fi nancial backing of Edward Drummond lady but to a number of signifi cant inventions. Among them was the automatic Tumblr machine, which in the late 1920s and early 1930s pave the way for the company to begin to reposition itself as a supplier of well designed, inexpensive glassware to the restaurant industry. However, the company’s inability to establish its niche in the house where is Market in the period between the wars resulted in the loss of a substantial percentage of Libbey’s assets in 1935 to Owens Illinois glass company, then the largest bottle maker in the world. Libbey became a subsidiary and leader in operating division of all why until 1987, when the latter was acquired by KKR and Company. 1993 Owens Illinois sold Libbey to the public in an initial public offering and Libbey became a publicly traded company and its own right. Today substantially expanded offerings include glassware, ceramic dinnerware, and fl atware, primarily for the institutional market. The Kitchen of Tomorrow, Libbey-Owens-Ford, 1942 Page 5

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