RUSSEL WRIGHT
Russel Wright (April 3, 1904 – December 21, 1976) was an influential American industrial designer best known for his innovative and accessible modern designs in dinnerware, furniture, accessories, and textiles. His work, particularly through the Russel and Mary Wright Design Gallery at Manitoga in upstate New York, is credited with shaping modern American lifestyle.
Wright believed the dining table was the heart of the home, and his design philosophy extended from tableware to larger pieces of furniture, landscaping, and architecture. His widely distributed housewares and furnishings promoted an easy, informal lifestyle that significantly influenced mid-20th century American home organization.
In 1927, Wright married Mary Small Einstein, a designer, sculptor, and businesswoman. The couple spent a summer in Woodstock, New York, involved in the Maverick Festival and artist colony. Mary, who studied sculpture under Alexander Archipenko, and Russel formed Wright Accessories, a home accessories design business. They created small home objects from materials like spun aluminum and wrote the best-selling "Guide to Easier Living" in 1950, which provided tips on reducing housework and increasing leisure time through efficient design and household management.
Russel Wright Studios continues to collaborate with corporate and public clients in licensing and manufacturing his designs and products. Throughout the 1930s to the 1950s, Wright designed popular furniture lines for various companies. His most famous line, the Art Deco American Modern "blonde" wooden furniture, was produced by the Conant-Ball company of Gardner, Massachusetts, between 1935 and 1939. Wright also collaborated with the Old Hickory Furniture Company in Martinsville, Indiana, on a collection of rustic furniture with modern stylings introduced in 1942, which remained popular through the 1950s.
Wright's early art training was under Frank Duveneck at the Art Academy of Cincinnati during high school. He initially pursued a legal career at Princeton University but was drawn to art, winning several Tiffany & Co. prizes for outstanding World War I memorial sculptures. This, along with the encouragement of his academic adviser at Princeton, confirmed his passion for art. He studied at the Art Students League of New York under Kenneth Hayes Miller and Boardman Robinson before leaving Princeton for the New York City theater world, where he became a set designer for Norman Bel Geddes and other notable figures.
After his theater career ended, Wright started his design firm, creating theatrical props and small decorative cast metal objects. His professional career was rooted in New York, where he employed early modern design practitioners like Petra Cabot, Henry P. Glass, and Hector Leonardi in his growing industrial design firm. His work is part of the collections at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Cooper Hewitt Design Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, Museum of Modern Art, Brooklyn Museum, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and Manitoga/The Russel Wright Design Center.
Wright's most iconic work was the American Modern Dinnerware designed for Steubenville Pottery Company in 1937. This rimless dinnerware pattern, initially made in beige and later in various colors, became immensely popular, selling over $50 million worth by 1954 and becoming a staple in American homes.
Russel Wright passed away on December 21, 1976, from a heart attack after battling cancer. He spent his final decade completing a nature sanctuary at Manitoga in the Hudson Valley Highlands, continuing his commitment to design and its impact on daily life. Wright is survived by his daughter, Anne Wright. His legacy endures through his innovative designs that brought modern aesthetics to the American public.
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