Jane Thompson presents: From Bauhaus to My House in Images, Words and Music

Do you remember the Design Research store in Cambridge? On Thursday, May 10, at 7:30 p.m., Jane Thompson will be in the Pond Room at the Jenks Center to present a visual retrospective of the life of the Design Research stores in Cambridge, New York and San Francisco, 1953-1978.  The talk is based on stories and insights gathered in preparation for the recent book "D/R The Store That Brought Modern Living to American Homes" by Jane Thompson and Alexandra Lange.

In a series of her husband and partner Ben Thompson's well-known triple-image slide shows, Jane Thompson dramatizes the trove of innovative designs he found abroad and introduced to the U.S., leading to a transformation of the home environment, furnishings and everyday equipment, which all became "art in everyday life".

The presentation encompasses the larger story of modernism in architecture and everyday objects, evolving from the 1920's German Bauhaus (founded by Walter Gropius, later Thompson's partner) into the mid-century vocabulary of American buildings, interiors, useful objects, textiles and graphics.  

Copies of the book, Design Research, will be available for $35, to be signed by the author after the presentation. 

About the speaker:

Jane Thompson.  Founding Editor, Industrial Design Magazine, (ID) 1953; co-founder, Harvest Restaurant, 1975; BTA Associate, Partner for Planning; Projects: Faneuil Hall Marketplace; Washington Union Station; Chicago Navy Pier.  Founder, Thompson Design Group, 1974-2011, National Design Award for Lifetime Achievement, 2010.