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PRESS RELEASE November 2, 2000 For Immediate Release Press Contacts: Lynn Rousso Michael Graves Named IFDA 2000 Trailblazer WASHINGTON, October 15, 2000. The International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA) has named Michael Graves, FAIA, the 2000 winner of its prestigious Trailblazer Award. Graves, one of the most significant architects and designers of the 20th and 21st centuries, is known for his extraordinary range of design at every scale of creativity, from the largest building complex to the smallest detail of a residential interior and its furnishings. The award will be presented at a luncheon during IFDA's biennial Conference, Friday, November 3 at the Mayflower Hotel, Washington, D.C. The recognition, the highest honor presented by the 53 year-old, 2000 member International Furnishings and Design Association, is given annually to a person who has made significant contributions to the furnishings and design industry. Graves is the 33rd winner of the Trailblazer Award, joining the ranks of such luminaries as first lady, Mrs. Lyndon Baines Johnson; developer Trammell Crow; White House curator, Clement Conger and international architect and designer, Philippe Starck. IFDA defines the Trailblazer honoree as someone who is creative and innovative and has demonstrated leadership qualities within his or her field and within the industry, and will, in the opinion of IFDA, continue to influence the industry. "Michael Graves is truly a Trailblazer in the full sense of IFDA's definition," Ron Becker, IFDA president noted. "His recent contributions to products that allow everyone to experience his exceptional breadth of talent as well as the diversity of his projects make him the perfect candidate. He does not have a one-directional focus, his work encapsulates both taste and function at the highest level, even in the most mundane everyday object." Graves was awarded a 1999 National Medal of Arts by President Clinton, who said that Graves "has taught us the importance of beauty, simplicity and intelligence in creating our everyday environment." Graves, who is the Schirmer Professor of Architecture at Princeton University where he has taught since 1992, is an influential theorist as well as a diversified and prolific designer. New York Times' Paul Goldberger wrote: "Graves... is truly the most original voice American architecture has produced in some time." Since the early 1980s his work has directly influenced the transformation of urban architecture from the abstraction of commercial modernism toward more contextual responses. His 85-person firm is based in Princeton, NJ and New York City. It includes a highly diverse international architectural practice, interior and product design and graphic design. His diverse projects include the Humana Building in Kentucky; California's San Juan Capistrano Library; Team Disney Headquarters in Burbank, Calif.; the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Hotels; and the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport Headquarters in The Hague, The Netherlands. Recent projects include the NCAA Headquarters and Hall of Champions in Indianapolis; the U.S. Courthouse in Washington, D.C.; and, one of his most intriguing accomplishments, the scaffolding of the Washington Monument that also included the renovation of the observation decks and interior exhibits. Graves has dubbed himself "a general practitioner," designing not only the interiors for his projects, but also a wide range of furnishing and artifacts, from furniture and lighting fixtures to jewelry and dinnerware for companies that include Alessi, Steuben, Disney, Phillips Electronics, and Black and Decker. Most recently he has teamed with Target Stores to bring his signature style of product to a larger public. For the German partnership of Duravit, Dornbracht and Hoesch, he has created "Dreamscape," a bath fixtures and fittings collection and for the Italian hardware manufacturer Valli & Valli, Graves designed a series of door handles in various metals. His awards include ten National AIA awards, 60 state AIA chapter awards and 14 awards from Progressive Architecture. His numerous products awards are for the Target Toaster (Chicago Athenaeum, product, and Industrial Design Society of America, IDSA, for both Target product and packaging.) He holds 10 honorary doctorates and is a member of the American Academy of Art and Letters. He was educated at the University of Cincinnati and Harvard University. Graves was awarded the Rome Prize in Architecture from the American Academy in Rome, of which he is now a trustee. # # # |
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