by D. Sproul | January 2nd, 2010
I have just discovered that the Denver Art Museum (DAM) has an extensive collection of graphic design history through their AIGA Design Archives. (AIGA is a professional assocation for design.) They have 6,000 objects ranging in time from 1980 to the present. Annual award winners in the AIGA design competitions are added yearly, as well.
The DAM is advised by a group of design professionals in Architecture, Design, and Graphics called the Design Council (which you may join- see below). This describes the Design Council, from their website:
Established in1990, the Design Council enhances and complements the activities of the Denver Art Museum’s Architecture, Design & Graphics Department, serving as an open forum where design professionals and enthusiasts can view, discuss, and interpret every aspect of the design arts. Members have the opportunity to learn, experience, and explore first-hand the fascinating world of design through lectures, local and national travel, discussions with Museum curators, behind-the-scenes exhibition tours, and social gatherings in conjunction with exclusive Museum events. By means of its enlightening programs, this dynamic group increases a greater public awareness of the design arts and acts as an advocate for good design in Denver and Colorado. (link to webpage)
It sounds like an interesting thing to join. Membership is open, with low annual dues, but one must also be a member of the Denver Art Museum. (That price is fairly low, as well.)
Last year’s exhibition that ran March-July in 2009 was about the Psychadelic art (website link) found on album covers and posters from the 1960s. View their posters or read about the 1960s artists.
For more information, you can find general information on the DAMs design collection here (which also includes architecture), or specific website information on the AIGA Design Archive here.
