Wallcovering samples by Morris & Co. (London, England). From Left to Right: Wreath, Christchurch, Bramble, Apple, Ceiling, Honeysuckle; 1887. Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, New York City. Image from exhibition website.

Meandering aimlessly through museum websites earlier this summer, I came across a description of an exhibit at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum called Multiple Choice: From Sample to Product.  It wasn’t the name that drew me in, though — no, being the sucker for good, beautiful design that I am, it was an image of a French porcelain plate decorated with the various colors and glazes offered by the company.  If you are at all like me — that is, if you love paper, patterns, color combinations, interior design, lace, typography, things handwritten or things letterpressed, or really anything, for example, that’s ever been showcased on the lovely blog design*sponge — then you absolutely must go see this beautiful little exhibit.

Sample Book: The Della Robbia Papers, designed by O.W. Jaquis and published by P.P. Kellogg Division, United States Envelope Co., 1926. Smithsonian Institution Libraries. Image from exhibition website.

This is the story of the little exhibit that could.  It was supposed to close a month or two ago (or so the young woman at the admissions desk told me), but is staying open through September 1, and if you are in the New York area, you would do yourself a favor to go and see it.  It’s not perfect, and there are no brochures anymore and no catalogue ever created, but these tiny, delicate, carefully-cut scraps of paper, rolls of handmade lace, and hand-numbered wallpaper samples cluster in the basement gallery in an array of beautiful colors that spread around the room.  It will take you about a half-hour, an hour if you stretch it and read every description, to go through the exhibition; it’s a short trip, but well worth it.  I wish the section on the “origin of the sample book” had been first — it would have provided, perhaps, a better introduction — but it’s irresistible either way to anyone who’d like to look at a lovely collection of objects.  They range from samples of painted porcelain, to Japanese wallpapers, to lace, to artist’s tools.

Sample book: A Descriptive Handbook of Modern Watercolor Pigments, written by J. Scott Taylor and published by Winsor and Newton, Ltd., late 19th century. Smithsonian Institution Libraries. Image from exhibition website.

One of my favorite objects was this group of paper samples (above, left).  Zoom in on the image to see a close up of the paper — the colors are named the most exotic, strange words: burnt sienna is “tobacco”, a dark sky blue is “gobelin”, and my favorite, a gray-lavender, is “gloaming”.  If you need any word inspiration, this is the exhibit to go to — many of the samples, colors, and patterns are named with some lusciously descriptive words, like the “honeysuckle” or “bramble” patterns (above, right) by Morris & Co.

Also nice to check out at the Design Museum is the garden in the back.  The garden is as big as the floor of the museum.  Unfortunately, while they change exhibits (the Rococo show just ended), there’s only a small room with a selection of works from the permanent collection and this show that are open; but they have Friday night cocktails in the beautiful, sprawling garden.  Can you tell from this review how much I love this charming little museum?  Don’t even get me started on their great website, which has a blog, Youtube channel, and extensive websites on each of their exhibits… just get there yourself and immerse yourself in a world of samples!

Multiple Choice: From Sample to Product, at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, 2 East 91st St., New York City. | Now through September 1, 2008.