10 Years in Tribeca

16 March - 25 May 2011

82 Franklin St NY 10013

R 20th Century announces 10 Years in Tribeca, an exhibition celebrating the gallery’s decade anniversary in their Franklin Street location, opening on March 16, 2011. A full color catalogue surveying the gallery’s history, designed by longtime collaborator Lisa Steinmeyer, will accompany the exhibition.

Over the past ten years R 20th Century has grown concurrently with the public knowledge of and appreciation for 20th century design. It is an exciting moment to reflect on the designers who emerged as footnotes and have since become iconic figures in the history of design. 10 Years in Tribeca delves into R 20th Century’s archives, library, permanent collections and available works to tell that story.

Works to be shown include those by a selection of historical and contemporary designers R 20th Century focuses on including Greta Magnusson Grossman, Verner Panton, Poul Kjærholm, Wendell Castle, Sergio Rodrigues, Hugo França and Jeff Zimmerman.

10 Years in Tribeca, curated by R principals Evan Snyderman and Zesty Meyers, looks back on the exhibitions and projects the gallery undertook over the course of their tenure in Tribeca. From the outset, one of Meyers and Snyderman’s goals was to work to preserve the quickly disappearing history of design through interviews, research and acquisition of ephemera and archives.

Over the years, Meyers and Snyderman invited practicing professionals and scholars in the arts, design and architecture communities to inspire them, their staff and clients through collaborative curatorial expertise and installation design. By inviting others to curate and design the space and experiencing the way it has been reinterpreted, Meyers and Snyderman consistently evolved and expanded their vision for the gallery. 10 Years in Tribeca will highlight these partnerships and the esteemed international community that helped shape the gallery’s 10 years on Franklin Street. Featured collaborations will include those with architect and designer Annabelle Selldorf, architect Steven Learner, design scholar Donald Albrecht, designer Michael Reynolds, photographer Robert Polidori, photographer Jason Schmidt, architect Calvin Tsao, gallerist Sean Kelly and others.

In addition to the design objects, the exhibition will include rare and never before seen works including archival photographs from Wendell Castle, original photographs by renowned 20th century architectural photographer Julius Shulman, architectural and industrial drawings by Greta Magnusson Grossman, original prints by famed Brazilian landscape designer Roberto Burle Marx as well as selections from R’s extensive library of antiquarian design books and from the printed matter the gallery produced.

10 Years in Tribeca will remain on view through June 4, 2011.