Author: Matthew Kennedy

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The Library Is Open: Queer Texts and the Designers Who Enabled Them
The worlds of design and writing collide in this exploration of published work by LGBTQIA+ individuals.
Pop Art & ’60s Vibes: Wallcoverings by or Inspired by LGBTQIA+ Designers
Get to know wallcoverings (and a shopping bag) by LGBTQIA+ designers and artists in pop art and 1960s aesthetics.
From the Collection: Queer Modernisms and Beyond
In observance of Pride month, Cooper Hewitt’s curatorial departments have selected a group of objects with LGBTQ+ stories to feature on the museum’s collection site. These objects are loosely connected by the theme of queer modernisms and are by LGBTQ+ designers.
Close-up view of the Pride flag, of many stripes and colors, hanging from the balcony of an ornate mansion with foliage covering it.
Intersex-Inclusive Progress Pride Flag at the Smithsonian
In 2023, Cooper Hewitt hung the Intersex-Inclusive Progress Pride flag on its south-facing facade. The installation celebrates LGBTQ+ Pride Month and demonstrates the evolution of inclusivity in the design of Pride flags.
Women Making Wallpaper
For Women's History Month, view more than 100 years of women's contributions to wallpaper design.
A digital collage of seven images of various types of design objects, including posters, a wallpaper, a textile, and salt and pepper shakers.
Women in Design
Discover the cross-disciplinary work of women in design through seven objects.
The Hewitt Sisters and the Anti-Suffrage Movement
Women's right to vote was a widely debated issue in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th century. Prominent women were on both sides of the debate, which pushed against traditional views of gender and class.
Composite image of two photographs, both picturing an exhibition of geometric structures in a brown wooded room.
Cooper Hewitt + The Smithsonian Institution: Becoming the Nation’s Design Museum
On October 7, 1976, Cooper Hewitt opened, joining the Smithsonian and becoming the nation’s design museum. Learn how that came to be.
Open spread of an illustrated book. On the left is a full-page black-and-white image of two elongated figures looking at a third figure that resembles a full moon. On the right is the book's title page. Two figures are embedded in intricate foliage. A rectangle with a blank background contains the title: "Salome: A Tragedy in one Act : Translated from the French of Oscar Wilde : Pictured by Aubrey Beardsley"
There’s Something About Salome
When Salome requests a severed head on a platter, be careful what you wish for. Or write. Or draw. In 1894, Oscar Wilde and Aubrey Beardsley—both considered enfants terribles of Victorian England for their provocative work and lifestyles—produced a printed edition of Wilde’s play Salome. Wilde’s psychological centralization on the character of Salome and Beardsley’s...