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DESIGNER PORTRAIT
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Bill Curry
1927 - 1971
American designer William ‘Bill’ Edwin Curry captured the zeitgeist
of the 1960s and ‘70s with his iconic lamp designs.
From his unique Los Angeles vantage point at the meeting point of
art, design and engineering, during an era defined by the space race,
pop culture and a new forward-looking optimism, he translated the
wonder and delight he saw around him into simple yet intelligent
ideas with clear visual narratives.
Curry graduated from the Los Angeles Art Center before starting
his career as an ad man, graphic designer and art director in the aero-
tech industry. In 1962, Curry launched his own home furnishings
company, Design Line Inc.
Credited with developing the first ‘total look’ lamp forms –
eliminating the base-bulb-shade concept and instead exploiting the
bare bulb in a playful, self-contained unit – he was recognized as one
of California’s leading designers by the time he died at the age of
just 43.
