Designer-in-Residence Scott Klinker
Scott Klinker has been Designer-in-Residence and Head of the 3D DesignDepartment at Cranbrook Academy of Art since 2001. Klinker earned a B.S. in Industrial Design from The University of the Arts in Philadelphia and later an M.F.A. in Design from Cranbrook. After years of designing in larger corporate contexts - as an in-house designer at Ericsson, and as senior staff at IDEO - Klinker ventured to Japan in 1999 to lead a product design program at the Kanazawa International Design Institute and founded his independent studio, Scott Klinker Product Design - focused on developing licensed designs for contract furniture, household goods and toys. He moved his practice to Cranbrook in 2001 and began to build partnerships with small, design-driven companies that shared his passion for innovation. In 2004, Scott’s Spaceframe Builder’s Kit for Offi & Co. was selected by Fortune magazine as one of the top 25 products of the year. In 2006, following his first solo exhibition at Cranbrook Art Museum, he was featured as one of Newsweek’s annual ‘Design Dozen’ selection of best new designers. Meanwhile, Scott has been busy organizing and curating exhibitions to promote Design in Kanazawa, Chicago, Detroit, New York and Milan. As an active agent in education, culture and commerce, Scott is building new works, connections and discussions to inspire design culture in America and abroad.
You can see Scott’s products at Design Within Reach Stores, Chicago's NEOCON furniture show and New York’s International Contemporary Furniture Fair. His work has been featured in ID Magazine, Metropolis, Wallpaper, Interior Design magazine, The New York Times, Fortune and Newsweek magazines.
You can learn more about Scott’s work at www.scottklinker.com.
Truss Cafe Chairs for Context Furniture
2006, Birch plywood and laminate
Dimensions: L19.5" W 23" H 29.5"
The Edge Desk for Offi & Co.
2006, Oak and Steel
Dimensions: L48 W32 H35
Recent Exhibitions
- 2006 Truss Furniture Collection Launch w/ Context Furniture at ICFF NYC.
- 2006 ‘Crossing Flatland: New Designs by Scott Klinker’ Cranbrook Art Museum, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
- 2005 Installation of Spaceframe at Design Within Reach, Birmingham, MI.
- 2005 Living Spaces Exhibition, Brooklyn, New York.
- 2003 Offi & Co. Exhibit at International Contemporary Furniture Fair, NY, NY.
- 2001 In Production: Recent Product Design by Cranbrook Academy of Art Alumni, Cranbrook Art Museum, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
Spaceframe Builders Kit
2004, recyclable PET
dimensions variable
Selected Bibliography
- Klinker, Scott. "Toward a Cultural Innovation: Why American Designers Need More Point-Of-View." Core 77 (September, 2006)
http://www.core77.com/reactor/09.06_klinker.asp - Kowalski-Dougherty, Karissa, ed. ‘Young Designers Americas’ daab press, 2006. 198-205.
- Kalins, Dorothy. "The Design Dozen." Newsweek (June 26, 2006) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13392347/site/newsweek/page/6/
- Kelly, Joseph."‘Design Visionaries." Clear magazine. (Vol. 4. Issue 4.)
- Bonamici, Kate. ‘The 25 Best Products of the Year’. Fortune magazine (December, 2004).
- Rohrlich, Marianne. "Take a Left at Lapland." The New York Times. (November 25, 2004) Section D4.
- Heller, Steven. "Best of the Best (or Best of the Rest?)." Metropolis (September, 2003) 90, 95.
- Zimmer, Dieter. "Magic Tables." MD magazine (Germany) (Nov. 2002) 57-61.
- Weeks, Katie. “Design Head of the Class." HOW magazine (April 2003) 45-47.
- Kaneda, Sayoko. “Scott Klinker” [interview]. Designer’s Workshop, no. 103. (June, 1999) 92-3.
- Pearlman, Chee, ed. ID Annual Design Review (July 1997) 192, 208