ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the way in which the exhibition design focused on the economic ideals of this Marshall Plan exhibition and how cognate works were sold at nearby department stores. With the exhibition focusing on economic stimulus and ideal standards of living, it should be no surprise that the exhibition design diverged from the prevailing installation styles of art museum installations at mid-century. Though some spaces reflected the new “white cube” style that was being championed in museums like MoMA, many of the installations were more akin to department store displays. Various types of works were situated together in visually pleasing displays; these also often created important juxtapositions between the work by artists and those by artisans or industrial designers. To these ends, organizers also worked with local department stores at each exhibition stop. There, museum visitors would be able to purchase similar items for their own homes. Like other exhibitions of design at US museums, Italy at Work partnered with retailers to outsource the sale of designed goods.
