1999.50, "Air King" radio (model 66), Harold Van Doren, Air-King Products Co., Inc. (maker)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Giving objects, even stationary ones, streamlined shapes was seen as a sign of progress and dynamism in the Depression years of the 1930s. Thanks to the emerging profession of industrial design and the need to enhance slumping sales figures, streamlined silhouettes were given to everything from buildings to buses and from cocktail shakers to vacuum cleaners. Furthermore, the modernity of these products was often enhanced through the use of new materials, including plywood, plastic, chromed steel, and aluminum. The end result was fashionable yet relatively inexpensive products that could be consumed on a mass scale and were not restricted to the wealthy upper class.

The innovative "Air King" radio (model 66) was groundbreaking in both plastics and radio design for its time. Until 1933, it was the largest Bakelite molding produced, and among American radios, it was a standout compared to its wooden predecessors. The casing for the radio features a stepped-skyscraper pattern, waterfall façade with an engraved plaque depicting a map of the world. Together, these unique attributes were quite modern for a radio of that era. Air King industries produced three other models similar to this one in an array of vibrant colors like red, blue, and green, but by the end of the thirties the trend for lighter colors increased and manufacturers began producing radios in white- or cream-colored urea moldings or in darker phenolic resins sprayed white.

Drawn from

Patrick Cook and Catherine Slessor, Bakelite: An Illustrated Guide to Collectable Bakelite Objects (Secaucus, N.J.: Chartwell Books), 1992.
Robert Hawes and Gad Sassower, Bakelite Radios (Edison, N.J.: Chartwell Books), 1996.
Charles Venable, Art Deco and Streamlined Modern Design, 1920-1950, label text 1999.50, 11/18/2001 to 5/20/2002

NOTES

TMS Updates:

Geo Xrefs - constituent birth place

Geo Xrefs - place of origin

Provenance

Bibliography

Catalogue essays

Artist/designers

Van Doren_Harold: ULAN: 500251807

Rideout_John Gordon: DMA

Cultures

Geography

Brooklyn (New York): TGN: 7015822

Process/materials

Historical periods

20th Century Design: The 1930s

American and European Design - 1920 to 1960

The Impact of Cubism on Art Deco and Streamlined Modern

Art Deco

Individuals

Subject terms

RELATED OBJECTS

PROVENANCE

1933: Air-King Products Co., Inc., Brooklyn, New York

Until 1999: Radio Craze, John Sakas, South Hackensack, NJ [1]

From 1999: Dallas Museum of Art, purchased from Radio Craze, John Sakas, South Hackensack, NJ on 2/5/99 [1]

[1] According to the following documents found in the DMA object file: DMA purchase order, DMA object receipt, DMA committee on collections record, and a Radio Craze invoice

AUDIO ASSETS

13311516: UMO. Listen to Charles Venable, former Chief Curator of Decorative Arts and Design at the DMA discuss Art Deco and Streamlined Moderne

VIDEO ASSETS

IMAGE ASSETS

http://www.industrialdesignhistory.com/node/231

WEB RESOURCES

PBS American Experience~Read more about Industrial Designers and Streamliners

Harold Van Doren~Read more about industrial designer Harold Van Doren

John Gordon Rideout~Read more about industrial designer John Gordon Rideout

ARCHIVAL RESOURCES

FUN FACTS

TEACHING IDEAS

RULES

Apply to objects where id equals 5320461

General Description

Giving objects, even stationary ones, streamlined shapes was seen as a sign of progress and dynamism in the Depression years of the 1930s. Thanks to the emerging profession of industrial design and the need to enhance slumping sales figures, streamlined silhouettes were given to everything from buildings to buses and from cocktail shakers to vacuum cleaners. Furthermore, the modernity of these products was often enhanced through the use of new materials, including plywood, plastic, chromed steel, and aluminum. The end result was fashionable yet relatively inexpensive products that could be consumed on a mass scale and were not restricted to the wealthy upper class.

The innovative "Air King" radio (model 66) was groundbreaking in both plastics and radio design for its time. Until 1933, it was the largest Bakelite molding produced, and among American radios, it was a standout compared to its wooden predecessors. The casing for the radio features a stepped-skyscraper pattern, waterfall façade with an engraved plaque depicting a map of the world. Together, these unique attributes were quite modern for a radio of that era. Air King industries produced three other models similar to this one in an array of vibrant colors like red, blue, and green, but by the end of the thirties the trend for lighter colors increased and manufacturers began producing radios in white- or cream-colored urea moldings or in darker phenolic resins sprayed white.