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The First Lady: Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to the White House.
It is a pleasure to be here today as we honor some of our
country's most talented, most visionary,
most public-minded designers -- folks whose work has literally
changed the way we look at the world and how we live
our daily lives.
Our honorees today come from a wide variety of disciplines and
fields, from architecture and landscape, to product design,
interior design, and much more.
But all of you share the same relentless commitment
to excellence.
Each of you practices your craft at the intersection of art and
science, form and function -- grounding inspiration and
innovation in fundamental principles of math and
physics and engineering.
And all of you have spent your lives pushing boundaries.
We know a little bit about boundary pushing.
(laughter)
The First Lady: Or just outright ignoring them altogether.
(laughter)
The First Lady: Refusing to be confined by the world as it is,
but instead having the courage, even the audacity,
to pursue your vision of the world as it can and
as it should be.
The great jazz musician Miles Davis,
one of my husband's favorites, once said,
"Don't play what's there, play what's not there."
And I think that's pretty much a good description of what each of
you does every day.
You're really playing what's not there.
You find solutions that we never thought of.
You reveal and create beauty we never could have imagined
or seen on our own.
But each of you has also committed yourself to a
fundamental principle, one best articulated, I believe,
by one of today's honorees, Tom Dair,
the president and cofounder of Smart Design.
As he put it -- and this is a quote -- "Design is about
people, not things."
What you do impacts just about every moment of our lives,
from the words we read, to the public spaces we enjoy,
to the devices that help us do our jobs and run our homes and
care for our families.
Your work can determine whether a family has shelter or whether
a village has clean drinking water.
It can help fight disease, educate a child,
and ensure we pass on a cleaner, healthier world, planet,
to all our children and grandchildren.
And your efforts grace our world with works of beauty that lift
our spirits and stir our souls like nothing else can.
But we honor you here today not just for your creations and
your innovations, but for the inspiration that all of you
are providing to the next generation of creators and
innovators and thinkers.
And I know that just today -- and I heard just a little bit --
you guys did something amazing.
You really raised the bar.
And that's exactly what we were hoping you'd do.
You took part in a Teen Design Fair -- it's really fabulous,
I can't wait to hear more of the details.
It occurred right here in Washington to help introduce
what I believe were more than 400 young people to
careers in design.
And I know that many of you were involved in similar efforts like
this back at home where you live and work.
And we know the impact that experiences like this can have
on the life of our young people, giving them role models for
success and exposing them to new possibilities,
helping give them direction and shape their dreams.
But we also know that far too few young people in this country
have access to programs and opportunities like
the one we did today.
Even those who live just minutes from our great museums and
cultural centers may feel like these resources are
far beyond their reach.
And one of my goals as First Lady is to help bridge that gap.
And that's why I've been working to make sure that
the White House is a showcase for America's rich cultural life,
and I want to open up these doors to as many of our young
people as possible, hosting them right here,
in these same seats at these same tables,
for concerts and workshops and mentoring sessions.
I want all our young people in this nation to know that they
have a place in our museums and in our theaters,
in our design studios, in our concert halls,
and in all halls of their very own White House.
And I've got a partner in that effort, standing behind me.
I'm pleased to have the honor of introducing Dr. Wayne Clough,
as you know, the head of our nation's Smithsonian
Institution, someone who shares the same mission.
And we were just talking about his travels, his works,
his meetings with Secretary Duncan to do more to make sure
that the experiences of the Smithsonian are available to
kids living in the most remote places right here
in this country.
Now back when the Smithsonian was founded in the mid-1800s,
it was focused primarily on science,
and it wasn't until later that it expanded into culture,
history, and then the arts.
And that's actually a pretty good summary of the trajectory
of Dr. Clough's career.
Wayne came to the Smithsonian from the Georgia Institute of
Technology, where he was the president.
And in one news article, he is described as -- and this is a
quote - "A geotechnical engineer who reads and writes poetry"
-- go figure --
(laughter)
The First Lady: "quotes Faulkner, and likes indie films and the symphony."
And he has brought to this current role that passion for
art and science, and that embrace of both that makes
our past and future one.
And during his time at the helm of the Smithsonian,
he's worked tirelessly to ensure that as many people as possible
-- particularly our young people -- can benefit from
everything this national treasure has to offer.
So, it is my pleasure not only to join you for lunch and to sit
next to Tim Gunn -- how cool --
(laughter)
The First Lady: But to pass the mic on to my dear friend,
someone who has been such a huge support to me in this role and
has made this day possible, along with the work that so
many of you do.
He helps lift it up.
It is my pleasure to introduce Secretary Wayne Clough.
(applause)
Mr. Clough: Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you, Mrs. Obama, for being so gracious a host
for this wonderful event.
I did mention to the First Lady that after this I have to leave
a little early to go to give testimony about Smithsonian
science, and they always prep me as to questions I might get,
and someone said I might this time get a question
about intelligent design.
And I said, wow, I'm really prepared for that one today.
(laughter)
Mr. Clough: Well, our honorees, of course,
are going to remember this day always in their history as a
wonderful chance to come and be, spend time in the White House
with the First Lady and all these creative people
who are here.
And courtesy of the Cooper-Hewitt's National Design
Museum, whose mission it is to explore the impact of design on
our daily life and advance the public's understanding of the
critical role of design in all of our lives.
We do this through our collections, our exhibitions,
our education and online programs,
and the great people of the Smithsonian.
The National Design Awards demonstrate and celebrate how
creative design affects the quality of our life,
our economy, and our environment,
and it continues to grow in time.
This year we mark the 11th anniversary of the Awards
Program, a milestone which will be celebrated on October 14th,
at a gala ceremony in New York City.
Now, in conjunction with the awards Cooper-Hewitt encourages
the public to participate through the online People's
Design Award, which is now in its fourth year.
The winner of that competition will be announced at this year's
gala in New York.
The 2009 winner was the Trek Lime Bike Corporation,
and representing the corporation today is the creative design
director, Eric Lynn.
Eric, congratulations.
This morning, Cooper-Hewitt, as the First Lady mentioned,
held its first ever DC-based Teen Design Fair,
and some 400 young people took part.
And hopefully will consider careers in design themselves
in the future.
I know the folks who attended that event told
me it was fantastic.
We expect them some day maybe to be here in the White House and
be award winners themselves, and if that happens,
we can thank the people who have helped us along the way.
We begin with Target, and Michael,
we thank you for everything Target has done for the
Smithsonian, and particularly for the Cooper-Hewitt and the
design concepts that it represents and that Target
supports so willingly and well.
And Target gives generously, as you may know,
5% of its income to all kinds of charitable causes,
equaling more than $3 million every week.
We also thank Bloomberg and P&G for supporting the National
Design Awards, and Fast Company, and New York Magazine and their
media sponsorship of the National Design Week and the
National Design Awards.
So today we celebrate the achievements of another group
of extraordinary designers in a variety of fields.
The Smithsonian itself is very fortunate to have an
extraordinary director at the Cooper-Hewitt,
a creative innovator in his own right, Bill Moggridge.
And one year ago today, Bill Moggridge was here at this
ceremony because he received the Lifetime Design Award,
and we thought wouldn't it be nice to hire Bill Moggridge
to be head of the museum.
(laughter)
Mr. Clough: And we were lucky to do that.
So Bill, it's all yours.
(applause)
Mr. Moggridge: Thank you, Wayne.
So please hold your applause until the end,
because we want to move along pretty sharply here.
The Lifetime Achievement Award is given to a distinguished
individual who has made lasting contributions
to design practice.
The winner is Jane Thompson.
Jane is an editor, designer and planner who for six decades has
explored how design relates to all of us.
She is the founding editor of I.D. Magazine and a essential
critical voice for and about design.
Thank you, Jane.
The Design Mind Award recognizes individuals who have changed
design thinking or practice through their writing,
research and scholarship.
Ralph Caplan is the winner.
For more than 50 years, Ralph has been thinking,
writing and speaking about design and collaborating with
designers on exhibitions, films, and publications.
He also edited I.D. Magazine.
I think Jane was his boss for a while.
The National Design Award for Corporate and Institutional
Achievement recognizes a company that places design at the center
of its business strategy.
The 2010 finalists in this category are
Design That Matters and OXO.
The award goes to the U.S. Green Building Council.
The Council promotes a sustainable future through
cost efficient and energy saving green buildings.
Since its founding in 1993, the organization has developed many
services, including the Lead Green Building Certification
Program, that rates design construction and operation
of buildings.
Architects today are transforming our homes,
cities, and public spaces.
This year's finalists are Design Corps and Lake/Flato Architects.
Kieran Timberlake is the winner.
Founded in 1984, the firm is noted for its integration of
research with design, and a deep environmental ethic.
They design for clients in the arts, public institutions,
and private residences, and will design the new
U.S. Embassy in London.
Designers continually refine and reinvent the way we
exchange ideas and information.
The finalists for Communication Design are
John Jay and Maira Kalman.
Stephen Doyle is this year's winner.
Stephen gives words a deeper meaning in graphic form,
resulting in an intelligent, provocative body of work.
His clients include the New York Times, AIGA,
Vanity Fair Magazine, and the publisher
Alfred A. Knopf.
He has helped to brand Martha Stewart and given a new identity
to Barnes & Noble.
The Fashion Design Award celebrates one of the most
personal and most public forms of design expression: clothes.
The finalists are Behnaz Sarafpour and Proenza Schouler.
I tripped on that one.
The award goes to Rodarte.
Rodarte was founded in Pasadena, California in 2005 by Kate and
Laura Mulleavy.
They do amazing and wonderful things to fabrics and materials,
inspired by border towns, California condos,
and Japanese horror films.
(laughter)
Mr. Moggridge: They've created a new lens for us to see fashion.
The Interaction Design Award is given for digital technology,
and the finalists are Local Projects and Potion.
The winner is Lisa Strausfeld.
Lisa is an expert at visualizing information.
She combines virtual and physical space to communicate
content, and she's earned many design awards,
including one for Sugar, the graphical user interface for
the One Laptop per Child Project.
The finalists for the award in Interior Design are Aidlin
Darling Design and Clive Wilkinson Architects.
William Sofield wins.
Bill is known for his unique take on modernism.
His holistic approach is grounded on craft and materials,
creating highly original and welcoming spaces.
Some of his projects are retail boutiques for Tom Ford,
Bottega Veneta, Yves St. Laurent, and Gucci,
as well as for the SoHo Brand Hotel in New York.
The Landscape Design category recognizes excellence in urban
planning and the design of parks and gardens.
Our finalists are Andrea Cochran Landscape Architecture,
and Stoss Landscape Urbanism.
James Corner Field Operations is our winner.
James established the firm in 1998.
The practice includes diverse projects in landscape
architecture and urban design.
Among their work is the High Line in New York City,
the pool decks and gardens of City Center in Las Vegas,
and Fresh Kills Park on Staten Island.
Product designers create the things that we encounter
in our lives.
The finalists are Continuum and Frog Design.
Smart Design gets the award.
Davin Stowell and Tom Dair founded Smart Design in 1980.
They're a multidisciplinary design consultancy responsible
for designing the OXO Good Grips kitchen tools,
the Smart Gauge instrument cluster for the Ford Fusion
Hybrid, the New York Taxi graphics,
and medical devices for UCB.
So please join me now in congratulating all of this
year's winners and finalists.
(applause)
Mr. Moggridge: And again, many thanks to First Lady Michelle Obama.
Mrs. Obama.
(applause)