Russel Wright Design Center

It’s illuminating to experience the work of an artist in the place where the work was created, especially when the artist’s contribution centers around designing for the home and for daily life. 

The famed mid-century designer Russel Wright is often credited with bringing modern design to the public and encouraging creative expression within the home. His approach to design and everyday living—“Good design is for everyone”—is exemplified in Manitoga, his Hudson Valley residence and woodland garden. We developed a gallery centered on his work, highlighting his enormous contribution to the realm of industrial design. The display, like Wright’s work, unites a pragmatic attitude and an organic formal language; it also integrates his core values: equity, individualism, a respect for the natural world, and experimentation.

The gallery design echoes the geometry and materiality of Wright’s pieces while imparting the critical role of the living world in his body of work. A muted palette sets off the colors and materials in his designs and simultaneously complements the tones of the house. Dense assemblages of objects, drawn from the collection, represent decades of exploration in form, color, and pattern. This swirl of objects, furniture, and textiles is set off by the glass wall of the exhibition area, positioning the display firmly within a context of nature, art, and design. A large table in the center of the gallery sets forth a timeline of signature Wright pieces.

For audiences familiar with Wright’s oeuvre, the gallery adds a rich interpretive layer to his designs. For those new to his work, the exhibition conveys the relationship between the objects Wright designed for everyday use and the architecture and landscape of Manitoga. For all, the space presents exemplary American design and the forces that shaped it.