Pirouette: Turning Points in Design was an exhibition at theMuseum of Modern Art in New York[5] that ran from January 26 to November 16, 2025. According to the museum, "the objects inPirouette highlight the role of designers at their most inventive ... and demonstrate the power of design to translate human experience into tangible forms and envision a better future."[6] The exhibition featured "widely recognized design icons and those known to more niche audiences, highlighting pivotal moments in design history."[7]
Pirouette: Turning Points in Design opened January 26, 2025[8] at theMuseum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.[6] Originally scheduled to run until mid-October, it was extended by a month, closing on the 16th of November, 2025.[9] The exhibition was curated byPaola Antonelli with assistance fromMaya Ellerkmann,[10][8][11] and included many familiar and iconic designs such asBiC Crystal pens,[12] Post-it notes, M&Ms candy, as well asSusan Kare's original hand-drawn artwork[13] from the early 1980s for the firstMac OS icons.[14][5][6]
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In addition to these widely recognisedcultural artefacts, the show also examined the impact of less well-known designs such asMassoud Hassani's wind-powereddeminer,[16] theDoctors Without Borders middle upper arm circumference measuring device (a.k.a. MUAC "Bracelet of Life"),[17]Sabine Marcelis'sCandy Cubes,[18] and the first 176 emojis devised byShigetaka Kurita forNTT DoCoMo in the late 1990s.[19][20] More familiar works of 2Dgraphic design included the 1975NASA worm logo byBruce Blackburn andRichard Danne,[7]warming stripes data graphics by climate scientistEd Hawkins,[2][21][22] and theI❤ NY logo – displayed together withMilton Glaser's original 1976 "back of a taxi" concept sketch for the iconic design.[19][23][24][25]
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The variety of objects presented ranged from an original 1960sSacco bean bag chair designed by Piero Gatti, Cesare Paolini, andFranco Teodoro [it],[28] to the ubiquitous, mass-produced, and anonymously designed injection moulded plasticmonoblock garden chair; from the creations of familiar names likeCharles and Ray Eames orVirgil Abloh, to familiar objects by less know creators likeArt Fry andSpencer Silver,Sara Blakely,Jerry Manock, or theDécolletage Plastique Design Team [d];[29] from industrially manufactured products like a 1980sSony Walkman portablecassette player, to bespoke, handcrafted, and experimental curiosities such as a chest of drawers byTejo Remy [nl] titledYou Can't Lay Down Your Memory,[26] various objects designed byChristien Meindertsma and made fromflax, as well as a macramé-carbon fibre chair byMarcel Wanders;[6][18][14] and from the patented and trademarked yet widely copiedMoka Express coffee pot, to the freely licensed,open source, 3D printedFree Universal Construction Kit byGolan Levin and Shawn Sims.[30][31][13][24]
The pieces on view were mostly from MoMA's collection and represented the work of 118 artists, designers, inventors, and other creators – an extensive display through which visitors were "guided only by wall text and interrupted by the occasional interactive installation" such as early 1960sView-Master stereoscopes.[32][33][34]
Events including anAbecedarium during which "twenty-six designers, scholars, DJs, photographers, and entrepreneurs [discussed] one paradigm-shifting object or idea, each corresponding to one letter of the alphabet" were held in support of the exhibition.[35][36] The day-long series of talks, staged in the museum'sCeleste Bartos [d] theater, presented audiences with "a steady stream of objects, voices, and perspectives" and an opportunity to "discover how objects and designs" from Post-it notes to thetampon "changed our culture and society."[36][35][37] Participants includedAlice Rawsthorn (Q forQuotidian),Sarah Kaufman [d] (U forUniversal),Susan Kare (I forIcon),Norman Teague (C forChair),Andrés Jaque (K forKitchen),Brandon Blackwood (L forLuxury), andCaterina Fake (Y forYesterday).[38]
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The show was described as an "ode to the power of design" which is intended to underscore "how important design is as a social force and a form of human expression" and "offers a captivating reflection on the power of design to change behavior", while other sources observed that the exhibition "showcases the industrial design of our never-endingage of anxiety."[32][8][21]
Mark Feeney, writing inThe Boston Globe, remarked that "both the deminer and Bracelet of Life leave considerations of mere aesthetics far behind. They're a reminder that good design can be a literal matter of life and death." Feeney compared Hawkins's warming stripes to aMorris Louis painting, observing that "seen in strictly visual terms, the graphic is quite pleasing [while] understood conceptually, it's alarming to contemplate."[40][5] He also noted that "some of the most striking and/or highest-profile designs in 'Pirouette' are incorporeal", referring to Glaser'sI❤ NY logo, Kare's original MacGUI icons, as well as othercomputer graphics featured in the exhibition such as "digital typefaces ... the@ sign for email [and] Google map pins".[5][3][41]
In reference to the inclusion of political provocations like theGay Pride flag and a "giant, dandelion-like anti-landmine device",Architectural Record observed that "in a climate where even the most anodyne appeals for inclusion and peace suddenly seem so aberrant, Antonelli's game feels like a surprisingly brave one."[32][16] The review also remarked that "putting the everyday, the ephemeral, and the commercial under the intellectual spotlight" shows to what extent MoMA and its curator are willing to go in order to "broaden the purview of the institution – and presumably its audience".[32]
