How Immigrants Influenced 20th Century Design with Elizabeth Lay, Design Historian, Curator, and Professor at GWU.
America experienced a wave of European migrants during the early 20th century. Some were escaping war and oppression while others sought opportunities in a growing democracy. These immigrants included giants of architecture and design: Mies van der Rohe, Walter Gropius, Laszlo Moholy Nagy, Eliel and Loja Saarinen, and Joseph and Anni Albers. They arrived in the U.S. by securing teaching positions at universities throughout the country, where they inspired the next generation of designers and architects such as Charles and Ray Eames, Florence Knoll, Jack Lenore Larson, and I.M. Pei. Lay examines how the contributions of their work and teachings changed the face of American design—including noteworthy local buildings that you will recognize!
Elizabeth Lay is a Design Historian and the Curator at Montgomery History’s Beall Dawson House and Stonestreet Museum in Rockville. She holds a Master’s degree in the History of Decorative Arts from the Smithsonian-GMU program in Design History, specializing in 20th century textiles, fashion, and women designers. Additionally, Elizabeth Lay is an Adjunct Professor at George Washington University teaching Women Designers of the Twentieth Century and 20th Century Costume.
Registration Link: www.littlefallsvillage.org/20CenturyDesign
A Partnership Between Little Falls Village & The Little Falls Library of Montgomery County Public Libraries
