The Chicago Athenaeum

Historic Good Design celebrates 65 years as the World’s leading mark for Global Design Excellence

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, JANUARY 27, 2015. . . . GOOD DESIGN™, the world's oldest and most important industrial design program, celebrates its 65th anniversary as a milestone for global innovation. The prestigious Awards are organized annually by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design in cooperation with the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies.

Since 1950, entries for design and innovation, sustainability, creativity, branding, ecologically responsible design, human factors, materials, technology, graphic arts, packaging, and universal design are submitted annually by various industrial design and graphic design firms working for the Fortune 500 companies. All products and graphics must be designed for a mass market, in production or manufactured for at least 2 years before the program title year. One of the main factors for the awards selection is based on whether or not a product can enrich society and people's lives through its design.

Approximately 40,000 GOOD DESIGN Awards have been given since the inception of the Award in 1950.

These U.S. federally trademarked awards were founded in Chicago in 1950 by architects: Eero Saarinen, Charles and Ray Eames and Edgar Kaufmann, Jr. The black dot-shaped logo was designed the same year by the late Chicago graphic designer, Mort Goldsholl. GOOD DESIGN aims to give international recognition for some designers and manufacturers when they devise innovative products, through invention and originality, beyond what is considered ordinary product and consumer design.

The annual Good Design Awards are organized by the Finnish architect and architecture critic and journalist Christian Narkiewicz-Laine, Museum President and CEO of The Chicago Athenaeum. "Good Design is the singular, international design awards program the entire design and corporate world waits for each year" states Mr. Narkiewicz-Laine. "Hundreds of leading winning manufacturers and Fortune 500 companies print the Good Design logo for awarded their products on their packaging, marketing information, advertising, websites, corporate information, posters, billboards, and branding."

Since 1950, the program has awarded the likes of 3M Company, Alessi, Apple Computer, Inc., Tata Motors for Tata Nano, Aston Martin, Armstrong World Industries, AT&T, Audi AG., Bang & Olufsen, BMW AG., Bodum AG., Bombardier Inc., BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH., Canal+, Canon Inc., Caterpillar, Inc., Continental Airlines, Coca-Cola Company, Daimler AG., Dassault Aviation S.A., Deere & Co., Dell Inc., Deutsche Lufthansa AG., Dyson, Electrolux Major Appliances, Festo AG + Co. KG., Fiat, Fisher & Paykel, Ford Motor Company, Knoll, Inc., General Electric Company, General Motors, Grundig, Herman Miller, Hewlett Packard Company, Hitachi, Intel Corp., Hyundai Motor Corporation, Japan Airlines, JCDecaux, KIA Motors, Knoll, Inc., LG Electronics Inc., Loewe AG., Logitech International S.A., Melitta, Mercedes-Benz, Microsoft Corporation, Miele, Moen, Motorola Inc., NASA, Nestlé, New Holland AG., NEXEN Tire Corporation, Novo Nordisk A/S., Qantas Airways, Porsche, Rado Watch Co., Ltd., Robert Bosch GmbH., Robert Bosch, Rockwell Collins, Inc., Royal Philips Electronics, Samsung Electronics, Sanofi Aventis Deutschland GmbH., Siemens, Steelcase Inc., Sub-Zero Refrigerator, Target Corporation, Toshiba Corporation, United Technologies, Vodafone, Volkswagen AG., Whirlpool Corporation and hundreds other visionary companies associated with GOOD DESIGN.

The GOOD DESIGN Awards are listed at The Chicago Athenaeum’s website at www.chi-athenaeum.org

The deadline for this year’s program is June 1, 2015.

Download our press release file here. You can preview online here all the winning projects for all the categories of the Good Design Awarsds 2014.

For more information, contact Mr. Lary L. Sommers

Director of Administration and Marketing
Tel.: +1/815-777-4444 or by email at lary@chicagoathenaeum.org.