Plastic Modernism

Sometimes a radio is just a radio, meaning we don't give it a second glance as an object, and are concerned solely about it function -  playing tunes.  But sometimes a radio demands we give it a second look.  Its design compels us to linger over its form, the way its dials cleverly lend themselves to our fingertips.  Suddenly the function of the radio is subsumed beneath the pure aesthetic joy we get from exploring the object, marveling at its molded form, slick surface, crisp graphics, touch sensitive controls, and all the other tiny details.  

The Braun Exporter Radio from 1956 (see above) is an example of how good design can transform a simple, banal, object into something that gives us joy.  It seems almost trite to suggest that the measure of good design is in the pleasure it gives, but that's exactly what underlies our aesthetic judgment of things.

Beautiful plastic objects - mid-century and beyond - are the subject of Brazilian designer Gerson Lessa's Flkr photostream.  Taken from his own collection, Lessa has created a virtual museum of every day plastic objects of extraordinary design.