New modern: Take a peek at the ROM’s Gallery of Modern Design

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Nine years after the completion of its Daniel Libeskind-designed crystal addition, Toronto's Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is once again upping its contemporary design game. On Saturday, the 104-year-old institution unveiled its new Gallery of Modern Design, a space for a collection that highlights notable examples of 20th century furniture, glassware, ceramics, silver and other metalwork (a Stacey Dukes chair from the catalogue is pictured above). It's a development that's been in the works for years, but only recently received a green light thanks to a donation in honour of Barbara Chisholm, a modern design lover who's been a ROM volunteer since the 1970s.

The new gallery is split into six sections covering design aesthetics from 1910 to 1965: French Art Deco, American Art Deco and Modernism, Germany's Bauhaus School, interwar Scandinavian design, International Modernism and Post-War Modern. The collection is made up of more than 100 artifacts that include key pieces like Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's Barcelona chair and Arne Jacobsen's "Egg" lounge chair.

The aim of the space is to trace the evolution of modern design from the Victorian-era missives of British socialist William Morris. "He thought that if you improved the quality of consumer goods, then you would improve the quality of life in industrial society," says Robert Little, the ROM's Mona Campbell Chair of Decorative Arts and the gallery's curator. A key moment on that trajectory is the 1948 DAX chair designed by Charles and Ray Eames in conjunction with engineers from UCLA, which Little says finally met the design challenge Morris had issued about 100 years earlier.

Though the ROM is best known for its displays of ancient objects, expanding its catalogue into the 20th century is a natural evolution. "I thought that we had a moral obligation as an educational institution to continue the presentation that we've got from 1900 to at least 1965, so that these works are out on permanent view," says Little. "There was no other place where people could go to see Mies van der Rohe or Frank Lloyd Wright or [Émile-Jacques] Ruhlmann or all of these other great artists. Seeing as we've got these pieces, we have to share them with people."

THIS WEEK'S STYLE HAPPENINGS

• On Dec. 5, the global fashion industry gathered at the Royal Albert Hall in London for the British Fashion Council’s annual Fashion Awards. The evening honoured the best of the year’s talent, including Simone Rocha for British Women’s Wear Designer and Vetements for International Urban Luxury Brand. American designer Ralph Lauren was recognized with the Outstanding Achievement Award in Fashion for his five influential decades in the biz. For more information and to see the full list of winners, visit www.fashionawards.com.
• For the 10th year, City of Craft is taking over Toronto’s Theatre Centre (1115 Queen St. W.) for a weekend of unique and handmade holiday shopping. Running from Dec. 9 to 11, vendors from across the country will sell everything from prints to jewellery and ceramics in a cozy, festive space. For more information, visit www.cityofcraft.com.
• Ottawa’s L.A. Pai Gallery is hosting its 29th annual Contemporary Canadian Jewellery Exhibition this evening. Held at 13 Murray St. from 5 to 9 p.m., it includes a selection of works by Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum artists from Iqaluit and introduces pieces by new jewellers in addition to baubles by veteran participants. For more information, visit www.lapaigallery.com.