Closed for Christmas

We would like to wish all of our followers a very merry Christmas and a happy 2014.

MoDiP will now be closed for the Christmas break along with the rest of the campus.  We will reopen on 6th January 2014.

Seasons Greetings

Susan, Pam, Louise & Julie

BXL photographic archive #0036

In 2010, MoDiP was donated a large archive of images relating to a single company. Bakelite Xylonite Ltd, also known as British Xylonite Ltd or BXL, was possibly one of the first British firms to successfully manufacture a plastics material in commercial quantities.  The company was established in 1875 and after a long history went into liquidation in the late 2000s.  The images we have in the collection are concentrated around the 1960s through to the 1980s and show us glimpses of the manufacturing process, products and the company’s employees during this time.  We plan to share an image each week to give a flavour of the archive.  If you want to see more you can view the whole collection on our website.

This week’s image shows a group of people wearing 'fancoats'.

To get a better view of the image and find out more have a look at it on our website http://www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/bxl--0500

We are still working on the documentation of the archive, some of the images we know more about than others.  It would be fantastic if we could fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge, if you know anything about the company or specific images it would be good to hear from you. 

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

Can you identify this object?

MoDiP has the kind of collection that you may think you are very familiar with. We have objects which we all use every day, and some pieces which are more unusual.

By looking at this distorted image are you able to guess what the object is? What do you think it could be used for?

Post your answer in the comments below or to find the answer click here and you will be taken to the MoDiP catalogue.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

MoDiP Christmas outing

Last week the MoDiP team went to London for a team building day*.  We visited two exhibitions, Pop Art Design at The Barbican which runs until 9th February 2014, and Hello, My Name is Paul Smith at the The Design Museum which runs until 9th March 2014.

*Christmas jolly

We enjoyed both exhibitions.  We were interested by the amount of polyurethane foam and acrylic used in the Pop Art movement.  One piece of particular note was the 1964 Gunnar Aagaard Anderson chair, Portrait of My Mother's Chesterfield, an example of which can also be found at MoMA.  This chair is made up of layers of polyurethane foam poured into place by hand, building up the chair form from the ground up.  Susan commented that it was like handmade 3D printing.

After viewing the whole exhibition the team wanted to take in the atmosphere of the Barbican estate* so we took a moment to sit on the lakeside terrace and enjoy our surroundings. 

*have a rest.

Photo courtesy of PeteD on Flickr via creative commons

The added bonus was the fabulous Robin Day furniture.

Julie Connery (MoDiP Administrator), Pam Langdown (Collections Manager) and Susan Lambert (Head of MoDiP) enjoying a well earned rest.

I got to have a little sit down too, holding up proof of where we have been.

The seating we made use of is part of the Sussex range designed by Robin Day and installed at the centre in the mid 2000s.  The white sections are made of glass reinforced polypropylene and the arms and legs are galvanised steel plate. We all agreed that they were very comfortable.

Although the Paul Smith exhibition had less plastics in it they were still present including a giant rabbit-shaped interactive rubbish bin designed to encourage people to throw their litter away rather then drop it in the street. The exhibition itself had a refreshing feel to it, the text and audio/visuals were all in the first person, 'this was the size of my first shop'.  It was the kind of exhibition which stayed with me for days, popping back into my thoughts without me noticing and making me smile.

I would whole heartedly recommend both exhibitions, Pop Art Design displays some really iconic pieces and Hello, My Name is Paul Smith shows how an exhibition about a living designer can be like a chat and a personal tour of someone's life, work and inspiration.


Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

BXL photographic archive #0035

In 2010, MoDiP was donated a large archive of images relating to a single company. Bakelite Xylonite Ltd, also known as British Xylonite Ltd or BXL, was possibly one of the first British firms to successfully manufacture a plastics material in commercial quantities.  The company was established in 1875 and after a long history went into liquidation in the late 2000s.  The images we have in the collection are concentrated around the 1960s through to the 1980s and show us glimpses of the manufacturing process, products and the company’s employees during this time.  We plan to share an image each week to give a flavour of the archive.  If you want to see more you can view the whole collection on our website.

This week’s image shows the quality control of an extrusion processor.

To get a better view of the image and find out more have a look at it on our website http://www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/bxl--0096

We are still working on the documentation of the archive, some of the images we know more about than others.  It would be fantastic if we could fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge, if you know anything about the company or specific images it would be good to hear from you. 

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

Keep your cool and guess the object

MoDiP has the kind of collection that you may think you are very familiar with. We have objects which we all use every day, and some pieces which are more unusual.

By looking at this distorted image are you able to guess what the object is? What do you think it could be used for?

  

Post your answer in the comments below or to find the answer click here and you will be taken to the MoDiP catalogue.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

BXL photographic archive #0034

In 2010, MoDiP was donated a large archive of images relating to a single company. Bakelite Xylonite Ltd, also known as British Xylonite Ltd or BXL, was possibly one of the first British firms to successfully manufacture a plastics material in commercial quantities.  The company was established in 1875 and after a long history went into liquidation in the late 2000s.  The images we have in the collection are concentrated around the 1960s through to the 1980s and show us glimpses of the manufacturing process, products and the company’s employees during this time.  We plan to share an image each week to give a flavour of the archive.  If you want to see more you can view the whole collection on our website.

This week’s image shows the manual laying of pipe.

To get a better view of the image and find out more have a look at it on our website http://www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/bxl--03855

We are still working on the documentation of the archive, some of the images we know more about than others.  It would be fantastic if we could fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge, if you know anything about the company or specific images it would be good to hear from you.

This will have you guessing

MoDiP has the kind of collection that you may think you are very familiar with. We have objects which we all use every day, and some pieces which are more unusual.

By looking at this distorted image are you able to guess what the object is? What do you think it could be used for?

Post your answer in the comments below or to find the answer click here and you will be taken to the MoDiP catalogue.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

Plastic warships

I was watching the local news this morning and there was a report on the Royal Navy using minesweeper ships in the Gulf to keep waterways clear to allow oil tankers a safe passage.  I was only half listening but then I heard the phrase 'plastic bottomed minesweepers', and my interest was piqued. Why would the ships be plastic? What Plastic?
 

HMS Atherstone in the Middle East. Photographer: LA(Phot) Stuart Hill
Image 45151301.jpg from www.defenceimages.mod.uk

The Hunt Class of 'mine countermeasures vessels' were first introduced in 1979.  They have a wooden hull which has an external layer of Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP). This material combination means that the vessel can withstand a nearby blast and also gives it a low magnetic signature so as not to trigger the mines. More information about these vessels can be found on the Armed Forces website http://www.armedforces.co.uk/navy/listings/l0017.html


Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

BXL photographic archive #0033

In 2010, MoDiP was donated a large archive of images relating to a single company. Bakelite Xylonite Ltd, also known as British Xylonite Ltd or BXL, was possibly one of the first British firms to successfully manufacture a plastics material in commercial quantities. The company was established in 1875 and after a long history went into liquidation in the late 2000s. The images we have in the collection are concentrated around the 1960s through to the 1980s and show us glimpses of the manufacturing process, products and the company’s employees during this time. We plan to share an image each week to give a flavour of the archive. If you want to see more you can view the whole collection on our website.

This week’s image shows a woman wearing a body brace.

To get a better view of the image and find out more have a look at it on our website http://www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/bxl--0230

We are still working on the documentation of the archive, some of the images we know more about than others. It would be fantastic if we could fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge, if you know anything about the company or specific images it would be good to hear from you.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

Can you guess what this is?

MoDiP has the kind of collection that you may think you are very familiar with. We have objects which we all use every day, and some pieces which are more unusual.

By looking at this distorted image are you able to guess what the object is? What do you think it could be used for?

Post your answer in the comments below or to find the answer click here and you will be taken to the MoDiP catalogue.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

AUB's PhD student with a focus on plastics

You may remember back in February MoDiP advertised a funded, plastics related PhD at the AUB.  I thought it was about time that we introduced you to the lucky recipient, Kate Hall. I asked Kate a few questions about herself and her plans.

 

LD: Hi Kate, welcome to the AUB.  As we advertised the MoDiP PhD bursary on our blog I thought our readers would be interested in who took up the challenge and what they plan to do with the opportunity. Can you tell us what attracted you to this research project?

KH: The opportunity and challenge to try something different is always a draw for me. Given the unique collection at MoDiP, I was very keen to work with the museum in some way.  Given the 'avant garde' approach that AUB has, this was not going to be an 'ordinary' journey. How could I resist? The outcome of the research should, I hope benefit the partners involved.

LD: So what is your background? And what is your subject area?

KH: A nurse, a teacher, a mother, I have also worked in the cultural sector for some years. I have a Masters Degree in Museum Studies which, added to my fascination with the story of people and objects has led me to writing around these areas. This research, combined with Creative Writing which is my art practice, will I hope, allow me to present a unique perspective on the Plastic Chair, the object of my research desire.

LD: You have been a PhD student for a few months now, what are your initial plans and how are you going to be using the collection?

KH: After much literature searching and consideration of the areas of study already well documented in Plastics, I am focusing my research on 'The Plastic Chair', several examples of which already exist in the MoDiP collection. It is an object so urbane but which has also achieved iconic status in the arenas of art and design. I plan to use Creative Writing as my art practice, an approach still in its infancy in the realms of art research. Who knows what stories and poetry will emerge.

LD: That sounds exciting, are you enjoying being a PhD student?

KH: Oh yes! Very demanding but very exciting and the challenge is something that I relish. Frustrating too as I want to move faster than I realistically can. Being very impatient and impetuous, I am having to develop a 'modicum' of discipline. I have Professor Stephanie James and Susan Lambert as my poor suffering supervisors bringing to the partnership considerable experience and expertise. They are certainly challenging me already so I sense that I will have to work hard and consistently to meet their high standards.

LD: Is there somewhere we can follow your progress?

KH: I have just started my own website and blog @ anothergreenfool.com which is principally my writing vehicle but which I will be developing more around Plastics as the research grows. I also use Twitter @KTHall1.

Thank you for your time Kate, we look forward to following your journey as a PhD student.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

BXL photographic archive #0032

In 2010, MoDiP was donated a large archive of images relating to a single company. Bakelite Xylonite Ltd, also known as British Xylonite Ltd or BXL, was possibly one of the first British firms to successfully manufacture a plastics material in commercial quantities. The company was established in 1875 and after a long history went into liquidation in the late 2000s. The images we have in the collection are concentrated around the 1960s through to the 1980s and show us glimpses of the manufacturing process, products and the company’s employees during this time. We plan to share an image each week to give a flavour of the archive. If you want to see more you can view the whole collection on our website.

This week’s image shows a small sailing dinghy.

To get a better view of the image and find out more have a look at it on our website http://www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/bxl--0508

We are still working on the documentation of the archive, some of the images we know more about than others. It would be fantastic if we could fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge, if you know anything about the company or specific images it would be good to hear from you.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

Can you identify this object?

MoDiP has the kind of collection that you may think you are very familiar with. We have objects which we all use every day, and some pieces which are more unusual.

By looking at this distorted image are you able to guess what the object is? What do you think it could be used for?

Post your answer in the comments below or find out more about the object by looking at the MoDiP catalogue.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

Kartell at MoDiP

Kartell is an Italian firm that makes and sells contemporary furniture. From MoDiP's point of view it is a very important company as plastics have been central to its mission from its outset.

The company was set up in 1949 to manufacture car accessories in plastics and shortly also became involved in a mission to substitute plastics for glass in laboratory equipment. In 1963 it expanded into household goods and set itself the challenge of introducing 'plastic to to the home'. It has worked and continues to work with an international team of leading designers and has played a significant role in Italy's reputation as a trendsetter. Kartell products are now sold in 96 different countries through 120 flagship shops and more than 4000 points of sale. It also has its own museum in which more than a 1000 of Kartell products are displayed.

Kartell has been represented in the MoDiP collection for some time by chairs designed by Philippe Starck, Ron Arad, and Antiono Citterio and Oliver Low, the latter two working in collaboration. In 2010 we acquired a stool entitled Stone Stool designed by Michael Wanders in 2006 which looks like a cut glass vase and we are pleased to have recently added three further works. They are Moon Bowl and Shanghai Vase designed by Mario Bellini and Jelly Plate designed by Particia Urquiloa. They are all made of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) sold under various trade names such as Acrylite, Plexiglas and Perspex, and famous in its early days as the material of which Spitfire cockpits were made. They are testimony to the brilliant clarity of the material. 

The new pieces match Wanders' Stone Stool in scale and are currently on display at MoDiP with it and two stools designed  by Philippe Starck: the Prince AHA Stool  of 1996 and Atilla Stool-Table of 1999. The hourglass shape of the Prince AHA Stool shares its symmetry with that of the title. The stool is reversible and its ends consist of lids that allow storage within. The Atilla Stool-Table is in the form of a hand-painted garden gnome holding up the seat representing a slice of tree. Who would have thought that the simple stool could give rise to such different and imaginative renditions?

The 2013 Kartell display

Susan Lambert
Head of the Museum of Design in Plastics

BXL photographic archive #0031

In 2010, MoDiP was donated a large archive of images relating to a single company. Bakelite Xylonite Ltd, also known as British Xylonite Ltd or BXL, was possibly one of the first British firms to successfully manufacture a plastics material in commercial quantities. The company was established in 1875 and after a long history went into liquidation in the late 2000s. The images we have in the collection are concentrated around the 1960s through to the 1980s and show us glimpses of the manufacturing process, products and the company’s employees during this time. We plan to share an image each week to give a flavour of the archive. If you want to see more you can view the whole collection on our website.

This week’s image shows a bottle being tested for quality.

To get a better view of the image and find out more have a look at it on our website http://www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/bxl--0077

We are still working on the documentation of the archive, some of the images we know more about than others. It would be fantastic if we could fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge, if you know anything about the company or specific images it would be good to hear from you.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

What could this be?

MoDiP has the kind of collection that you may think you are very familiar with. We have objects which we all use every day, and some pieces which are more unusual.

By looking at this distorted image are you able to guess what the object is? What do you think it could be used for?

Post your answer in the comments below or find out more about the object by looking at the MoDiP catalogue.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

BXL photographic archive #0030

In 2010, MoDiP was donated a large archive of images relating to a single company. Bakelite Xylonite Ltd, also known as British Xylonite Ltd or BXL, was possibly one of the first British firms to successfully manufacture a plastics material in commercial quantities. The company was established in 1875 and after a long history went into liquidation in the late 2000s. The images we have in the collection are concentrated around the 1960s through to the 1980s and show us glimpses of the manufacturing process, products and the company’s employees during this time. We plan to share an image each week to give a flavour of the archive. If you want to see more you can view the whole collection on our website.

This week’s image shows a man making a mould at Plenmeller.

To get a better view of the image and find out more have a look at it on our website http://www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/bxl--162914

We are still working on the documentation of the archive, some of the images we know more about than others. It would be fantastic if we could fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge, if you know anything about the company or specific images it would be good to hear from you.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

Guess the object

MoDiP has the kind of collection that you may think you are very familiar with. We have objects which we all use every day, and some pieces which are more unusual.

By looking at this distorted image are you able to guess what the object is? What do you think it could be used for?

Post your answer in the comments below or find out more about the object by looking at the MoDiP catalogue.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

BXL photographic archive #0029

In 2010, MoDiP was donated a large archive of images relating to a single company. Bakelite Xylonite Ltd, also known as British Xylonite Ltd or BXL, was possibly one of the first British firms to successfully manufacture a plastics material in commercial quantities. The company was established in 1875 and after a long history went into liquidation in the late 2000s. The images we have in the collection are concentrated around the 1960s through to the 1980s and show us glimpses of the manufacturing process, products and the company’s employees during this time. We plan to share an image each week to give a flavour of the archive. If you want to see more you can view the whole collection on our website.

This week’s image shows a shoe polish applicator.

To get a better view of the image and find out more have a look at it on our website http://www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/bxl--1590

We are still working on the documentation of the archive, some of the images we know more about than others. It would be fantastic if we could fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge, if you know anything about the company or specific images it would be good to hear from you.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

What could this be?

MoDiP has the kind of collection that you may think you are very familiar with. We have objects which we all use every day, and some pieces which are more unusual.

By looking at this distorted image are you able to guess what the object is? What do you think it could be used for?

Post your answer in the comments below or find out more about the object by looking at the MoDiP catalogue.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

BXL photographic archive #0028

In 2010, MoDiP was donated a large archive of images relating to a single company. Bakelite Xylonite Ltd, also known as British Xylonite Ltd or BXL, was possibly one of the first British firms to successfully manufacture a plastics material in commercial quantities. The company was established in 1875 and after a long history went into liquidation in the late 2000s. The images we have in the collection are concentrated around the 1960s through to the 1980s and show us glimpses of the manufacturing process, products and the company’s employees during this time. We plan to share an image each week to give a flavour of the archive. If you want to see more you can view the whole collection on our website.

This week’s image shows a stack of dinghies.

To get a better view of the image and find out more have a look at it on our website http://www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/bxl--0518

We are still working on the documentation of the archive, some of the images we know more about than others. It would be fantastic if we could fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge, if you know anything about the company or specific images it would be good to hear from you.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

What is this used for?

MoDiP has the kind of collection that you may think you are very familiar with. We have objects which we all use every day, and some pieces which are more unusual.

By looking at this distorted image are you able to guess what the object is? What do you think it could be used for?

Post your answer in the comments below or find out more about the object by looking at the MoDiP catalogue.

Louise Dennis (Assistant Curator)

Ten Most Wanted

Ten Most Wanted is a research project supported by Nesta, Arts and Humanities Research Council and public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England being undertaken by MoDiP in collaboration with the University of Brighton and Adaptive Technologies (builders of the MoDiP website), to create an online game to encourage the public to engage with musem collections in a new way by researching wanted facts about objects. The project is being piloted on objects in MoDiP's collection but the intention is that the methodology should work for a wide range of different kinds of museum objects and heritage sites. 

The first Ten Most Wanted selection displayed at MoDiP

The website is now up and running, albeit still in development. People are playing and verifiable facts are beginning to flow in from as far away as Canada. It was some stair carpet clips that first caught people's attention. We knew they were made by a firm called Byson because of lettering on them but we knew nothing about the firm or who designed them. This is the story of how the designer was identified.

Rupert Radcliffe set the trail going with the information that clips were  patented on 10 September 1932 by Ernest Harrison, of Lathom Street in Bury and provided the full patent listing. Lewis Orchard  connected Byson and Ernest Harrison. Both were located in Bury and are co-assignees on at least nine patents. Stephen Hill  told us that 'about 15-years ago I was renovating a 1920s house in Wolverhampton and found a box of these in a local junk shop. Some were broken and most had paint on them. Over the years I've picked up more as and when I've seen then for sale with the intention of making up a good complete set. The 'box' is just an old biscuit tin, not the original packaging unfortunately' and sent us this photograph of his collection.

Phil Blume then took up the trail and found a Canadian website - www.quillsquotesandnotes.com/bite-bread.htm - written by Rosemary Phillips in which she tells of her grandfather, Ernest Harrison, inventing a bread slicer in 1927 and this being the "beginning of an inventors creative career". He emailed her asking if she knew of any connection between her grandfather Ernest Harrison and the Ernest Harrison of Bury, Lancashire and this is how she replied:

'Thank you so much for your e-mail – this really means a lot to me.

Yes, Ernest Harrison, my grandfather, was the designer of those plastic stair treads, through his company Byson, in Bury, Lancashire. Byson also produced plastic buttons, and helmets for the war, and toilet seats.

Ernest’s biggest contribution to the design world (besides creating one of the first automatic bread slicers) was the introduction of foam rubber (then only used as an insulation) to replace horsehair in upholstery. My attempts at finding the source of this in 1981 were at Dunlopillo in Wales, where they were unable to provide that information, but did give me a formal luncheon that left the Dunlopillo scientists and staff wondering about why I was there – that my visit was evidently very important. (See the attached Finding Ernest)

So in effect, you could say, that Ernest Harrison was also the initiator of the foam revolution... this will not be shown in the historic documentation of the industry... but I know about it because I lived with the chairs that Ernest used to demonstrate to Dunlop how to use their foam insulation for upholstery. They were not comfortable to sit on, because the foam they had at the time, that was used in those chairs, was in open squares, not a whole slab.

I spent a fair bit of time trying to research this information, but without much success... and when Ernest died, all I was able to rescue from his belongings was a few drawings of items he was still trying to patent in the 1950’s...'

Thanks to Lewis Orchard we know also that the clips were in production by 1934 as he found out that Byson Appliance are listed at the White City Industries Fair, as producers of "Stair-Carpet-Holders (non-metal_ Made from Bysonite in Oak, Walnut, Mahogany, Black, Green and Orange Colours.  I suspect from the patterning on those in the MoDiP collection: www.modip.ac.uk/artefact/aibdc-00552,  they are walnut examples. It would be wonderful to have some in different colourways.


Susan Lambert
Head of MoDiP