Clifford Brooks Stevens (June 7, 1911 - January 4, 1995) is an American industrial designer of home furnishings, appliances, cars and motorcycles - as well as graphic designers and stylists. Stevens founded Brooks Stevens, Inc. headquartered in Allenton, Wisconsin.
In 1944, along with Raymond Loewy and eight others, Stevens formed the American Association of Industrial Designers. After his death in 1995, the New York Times called Stevens "a major force in industrial design."
Video Brooks Stevens
Background and private life
Stevens was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on June 7, 1911. Against polio as a child, he was encouraged by his father to practice drawing when confined to his bed, possibly motivating his career in design. He studied architecture at Cornell University from 1929 to 1933, and founded his own home furniture design firm in 1934 in Milwaukee. His son, Kipp Stevens, ran Brooks Stevens Design Associates until the end of 2008, when he resigned.
In 1959, Stevens opened a 12,500sf automotive museum in Mequon, Wisconsin, which became a warehouse for its own design as well as another - and became a production facility in the late 1980s for the Wienermobile fleet. The museum was closed in 1999, four years after his death.
Stevens died on January 4, 1995, in Milwaukee. He survived by his wife, Alice, son of Kipp, William, and David, a daughter, Sandra A. Stevens, and five grandchildren.
Maps Brooks Stevens
Design
His designs at home and kitchen utensils are very popular, and he is recognized as the originator of the blue egg circle egg phase of the 1950s. He also practices architectural design and graphic design. Noteworthy is the Miller Brewing logo design and he is also believed to convince the company to switch from traditional chocolate bottles to clear bottles.
As a car designer, Stevens redesigned the 1962 Studebaker Gran Turismo Hawk with a very small budget. The fast and elegant GT persists until the end of American production. According to Hendry, Stevens also laid out "three innovative products for family car use for the period 1964-1966" (which was never produced). He then designed the Harley-Davidson motorcycle including the 1949 Hydra-Glide Harley, one of the first, helping create a new suspension fork in front, bucket headlamps, and a sleek design. All Harleys since, including models in production now, are based on Stevens body design.
He designed the Jeep Wagoneer, which was introduced for 1963 by Willys-Jeep. This model is so popular that it is offered essentially the same form by the next Jeep owner, including Kaiser Jeep, AMC, and finally Chrysler, until 1991.
Stevens designed Oscar Mayer Wienermobile, an icon of American pop culture. He designed the engine for Briggs and Stratton. He also designed the university logo for Milwaukee Technical School (MSOE) in 1978 as part of the "Diamond Jubilee" celebration. The logo is still in use today.
Stevens designed the postwar Wartop Lounge observation car for Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & amp; Pacific Railroad's Hiawatha passenger train. He also designed a series of sports car racing "Excalibur" in conjunction with Kaiser Motors. Beginning in the mid-1960s he and his sons began producing Excalibur, which was styled after the Mercedes-era roadster of the 1930s. He modernized the Aero-Willys sedan that was offered in Brazil in the 1960s, and there is a view of Studebaker Hawk-which is very similar to the bodies of these cars.
Stevens' design contribution to the recreational boating industry includes a collaboration with Outboard Marine Corp for stylish outboard motor series Evinrude Lark and Johnson Javelin. He also designed the concept of the ship Evinrude Lark, which was eventually produced as Cadillac Sea Lark. Together with Bob Hammond's 1956 Lone Star Meteor, this design can be credited with introducing the post-war automotive style of the world for recreational crafts. Other jobs in the marine industry include designs for the Owens Yacht Company and Cutter Boats as well as the stainless steel marine hardware line for Vollrath Company.
Non-conformity planned
Although he is often cited with finding the concept of planned obsolescence (the practice of shortening product life cycles to influence consumer purchasing patterns for producers), he does not create them but further popularizes them. Stevens defines it as "instilling a buyer's desire to have something a little newer, slightly better, a little faster than necessary". His view is always to make consumers want something new, rather than creating a poor product that needs to be replaced. There is some debate about his role in this controversial business practice.
See also
- Automotive design
- Industrial design
- Product design
- Paxton Phoenix
References
http://wisconsinology.blogspot.com/2009/02/brooks-stevensthe-designer-of-20.html
External links
- 60 Years of Industrial Design, gave a short biography of Stevens
- Official Site
- Brooks Stevens: Industrial Design Company (still operating)
- Milwaukee Art Museum Exhibition Site
- Milwaukee Road "Skytops"
- Excalibur Story
- Site d'information sur l'automobile Excalibur (France)
- Designer of the Brooks Stevens Video Industry produced by Wisconsin Public Television
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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