AIGA recognized by IMLS for its role in design archiving and conservation

NEW YORK, September 8, 2008. AIGA, the professional association for design, is committed to preserving and making accessible the aspects of design history with which it has been associated since 1914. These include archival materials and design artifacts documenting the evolution of communication design in the United States since the association’s origins. AIGA’s archival efforts have been strengthened with a donation from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the primary source of federal funding of the nation’s museums and libraries. The IMLS, in cooperation with the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH), has awarded AIGA with one of the limited sets of the Connecting to Collections Bookshelf, a core set of conservation books, DVDs and online resources.

AIGA executive director Richard Grefé commented: “The IMLS donation is a critical step in AIGA’s efforts to protect design history. It validates the efforts designers nationwide have made to assist AIGA in this endeavor, and it provides a quantum improvement in our ability to meet professional standards to document the history of AIGA’s role in a dynamically adapting profession as well as sharing standards that our member designers should use in protecting their own history.”

The resources will be added to the AIGA library and will be consulted to ensure proper handling, storage and exhibition of its collections. The target collection that will benefit from this resource is the AIGA National Design Center’s AdamsMorioka Archives Vault, in New York City. The institutional archives, named for the donors of the first major grant toward the preservation of the collection, are invaluable to AIGA members and design scholars. Including newsletters, journals and exhibition catalogues from 1914 to the present, and a developing Medalists’ Flat File, the vault's artifacts document the organization’s extensive history and association with the century’s most influential designers.

IMLS director Anne-Imelda Radice, noted the selective process of placing each IMLS bookshelf and said of its recipients: “These libraries, museums and archives are in the forefront of our call to action on behalf of America’s collections. According to a recent national survey, our important collections are at great risk, and without them, the American story simply cannot be told to future generations.”

For more information on the conservation initiative, please visit www.imls.gov/collections.

About the Institute of Museum and Library Services

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. The Institute’s mission is to create strong libraries and museums that connect people to information and ideas. The Institute works at the national level and in coordination with state and local organizations to sustain heritage, culture and knowledge; enhance learning and innovation; and support professional development. To learn more about the Institute, please visit www.imls.gov.

Related news

A Concise Guide to Archiving for Designers—a publication of the Dutch Archives for Graphic Designers (NAGO), a foundation that seeks to collect, preserve and provide digital access to the archives of prominent Dutch designers—has been published in English on the AIGA website. It provides designers with the proper ways to store and describe their collections in 10 short chapters.

About AIGA

AIGA, the professional association for design, is the premier place for design—to discover it, discuss it, understand it, appreciate it, be inspired by it.

AIGA’s mission is to advance designing as a professional craft, strategic tool and vital cultural force. AIGA stimulates thinking about design through journals, conferences, competitions and exhibitions; demonstrates the value of design to business, the public and government officials; and empowers the success of designers at each stage of their careers by providing invaluable educational and social resources.

Founded in 1914, AIGA remains the oldest and largest professional membership organization for design. AIGA now represents more than 22,000 design professionals, educators and students through national activities and local programs developed by 62 chapters and 240 student groups. AIGA is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) educational institution.

For more information, visit www.aiga.org or contact:

Steve Rogenstein
Director of marketing and communications
AIGA | the professional association for design
Tel 212 710 3121
steve_rogenstein [at] aiga [dot] org