Jean Prouvé at RAW

It was about 4 years ago that I first mentioned my admiration for Jean Prouvé.  G-Star RAW, a designer clothing company founded in Amsterdam in 1989, has a deep appreciation for Prouvé's industrial designs. So much so that the entire company is furnished with some of his most iconic furniture. 

Normally I'm not a huge G-Star fan, I never really think about buying clothes from them, but considering their design inspiration and eye on detail and quality...perhaps this translates into their brand and clothing as well. 

Prouvé’s constructive logic and strict utilisation of honest industrial materials not only corresponds to the product philosophy and brand identity of G-Star but also shows a strong affinity to the architecture of Rem Koolhaas’s new G-Star headquarters, built in 2014. Thus it was a consistent decision to completely furnish the offices, conference rooms and canteens with designs created by Jean Prouvé some 70 years ago for the interiors of several French corporations and universities. Together with the architecture, they create a workplace that reflects the company’s radical design approach.  - Vitra

You can read a little more about engineer, artist, thinker, metal worker, designer and Frenchman Jean Prouvé here.

The Glenn H. Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport, NY

Here's a picture of Curtiss on the bike.  1907, was a very busy time for Curtiss. In January, for example, he rode the world’s first V-8 motorcycle to a speed of 136 miles per hour in Ormond Beach, Florida. Having driven the cycle faster than even the typical locomotive of the day, he became known as “the fastest man on earth.”  Full here.

The June Bug was designed by Glenn Curtiss and powered by a Curtiss engine.

So his wife could come along.

Shaft-driven bicycle!

Could be handy going downhill in Philly on the fixed gear!

1934 Zündapp flat twin K500 shaft-drive motorcycle.

I had the opportunity to visit the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum yesterday after a long drive back to Philadelphia from Buffalo, NY.  The museum is located in Hammondsport, NY near Keuka Lake.  Keuka means "canoe landing" in the Iroquois language and "lake with an elbow" in the Seneca language.

Glenn Curtiss was an innovator in aviation, bicycles, and motorcycles.  He was a talented motorcycle builder and racer and built engines for airships in the early 1900s.  He worked with the Aerial Experiment Association (AEA), a group founded by Alexander Graham Bell.  Early on he had an interest in bicycles and started his own business building and maintaining them in Hammondsport.  Curtiss began assembling engines and attaching them to the frame of bicycles.  His desire to go fast was born.  Breaking records in 1907 riding his V-8 motorcycle, building countless engines for famous aircraft, and innovating transportation and inspiring many thinkers for years to come.  

If you are ever passing through or on a wine tour near the finger lakes, add this to your itinerary!