Director: Paul W. Thompson
Total Full-time Employees: 90
Annual Budget (federal and trust) FY 2008: $13 million
Approximate Number of Artifacts: 206,200
Visitors (2007): 224,000

Background
Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution is the only museum in the nation devoted exclusively to historic and contemporary design. The museum presents compelling perspectives on the impact of design on daily life through active educational programs, exhibitions and publications.

The museum was founded in 1897 by Amy, Eleanor and Sarah Hewitt—granddaughters of industrialist Peter Cooper—as part of The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. A branch of the Smithsonian since 1967, Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum is housed in the Andrew Carnegie Mansion on Fifth Avenue in New York City.

Collections
International in scope and possessing one of the most diverse and comprehensive collections of design works in existence, the museum's rich holdings range from the Han Dynasty (200 B.C.) to the present day and total more than 200,000 objects.

The museum's collections are organized in four curatorial departments, which are supported by design archives and a reference library with more than 70,000 volumes, including 5,000 rare books.

• Product Design and Decorative Arts (40,000 objects)
• Drawings, Prints and Graphic Design (140,000 objects)
• Textiles (30,000 objects)
• Wallcoverings (10,000 objects)

Exhibitions
More than 9,000 square feet of gallery space is devoted to changing exhibitions on a variety of topics that reflect the scope of the museum's collections and mission. In fall 2003, the museum established its first collection gallery, The Nancy and Edwin Marks Gallery, specifically dedicated to showcasing items from its remarkable permanent collections. In spring 2006, the museum opened its refurbished ground floor, including the Target National Design Education Center and a new 1,300-square-foot gallery. The museum will continue to enhance its exhibition and visitor facilities with a $43-million program to nearly double exhibition space, enhance educational services, accommodate growth of its permanent collection and boost its endowment to support operating costs.

The exhibition programming for 2008 features both the historic and contemporary.

• "Campana Brothers Select: Works from the Permanent Collection," Feb. 15 – Aug. 24, 2008
• "Rococo: The Continuing Curve, 1730 -2008," March 7 – July 6, 2008
• "House Proud: Nineteenth-century Watercolor Interiors from the Thaw Collection," Aug. 12 – Jan. 25, 2009
• "Wall Stories: Children's Wallpaper and Books," Oct. 3 – May 8, 2009
• "Solos: Tulou/Affordable Housing in China," Oct. 3 – May 8, 2009

Education and Research
The museum's educational initiatives encompass programs targeted to youth and adults, including lectures, seminars, symposia, workshops, family events and guided exhibition tours. Museum education programs explore the role of design in everyday life, engage larger, more diverse audiences and fulfill the mission of the Hewitt sisters to serve as a catalyst for design education, nationally and internationally.

In order to extend its reach and impact, Cooper-Hewitt is expanding its Web presence, working toward "a museum without walls." Highlights of the new online offerings include access to featured works from the museum's 200,000-object collection and expanded professional development programs for K-12 teachers, including 120 lesson plans aligned to national standards, which highlight design as a teaching tool across the curriculum.

A center for scholarly and applied research, the museum provides professional development and museum training to students through a graduate-level program in the history of decorative arts conducted in partnership with The Parsons School of Design. The program, based at Cooper-Hewitt, emphasizes object-based teaching, using the museum's collections.

From its establishment in 1897, the museum has considered its holdings as readily available "study collections" to students, scholars and design professionals, as well as to the general public.

To accommodate research requests and facilitate the work of scholars and curators on staff, the museum campus includes the following:

• The Drue Heinz Study Center for Drawings and Prints
• The Henry Luce Study Room for American Art
• The Di Palma Center for the Study of Jewelry and Precious Metals
• The Nancy and Edwin Marks Master's Program Suite
• The Nancy and Edwin Marks Gallery

Publications
The museum publishes catalogs of its collections and exhibitions, as well as independent publications related to the museum's resources. In 2006, the museum launched its self-publishing venture with the release of the exhibition catalog, "Design Life Now." Recent publications include the catalogs "Design for the Other 90%" (2007), "Piranesi as Designer" (2007) and "Provoking Magic: Lighting of Ingo Maurer" (2007).

About the Museum
Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum is housed in the former home of industrial magnate Andrew Carnegie. The 64-room mansion, built from 1899 to 1902, was designed by the architectural firm of Babb, Cook & Willard in the Georgian style of architecture.

Hours are Mondays through Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Fridays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Sundays, noon to 6 p.m. The museum is closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Public transit routes include the Lexington Avenue 4, 5 and 6 subways (86th or 96th Street stations) and the Fifth and Madison Avenue buses. General admission, $15; senior citizens and students ages 12 and older, $10. Cooper-Hewitt members and children younger than 12 are admitted free. The museum is fully accessible.

SI-197A-2008