One completely unexpected bonus from taking a design history class with Russell Flinchum, the author of American Design (for the MoMa design series) is that I sometimes get to do the “oh look at me, I own that object” dance. In this case it is an Ecko products Flint potato masher (1943-1946)
There was a certain ilk of industrial designer whose goal was to make the best possible product for the most people at the best possible price. Flint attached the handle to the tool with a rivet. The manufacturers could have made this all as one piece but that action would have doubled the cost. "Now that', as Russell would say, 'is American…willing to compromise design in favor of cost." Imagine: design for the masses at affordable prices provided by the American capitalist system.
That certain ilk still produces today. Another product with infinite extensions is the OXO good grip family.
The actual product in MoMa's collection is the spatula.
(a silly side note: if anyone owns the American Design book, take a look at the piece on the previous page. it is Arens and Brookhart’s streamliner meat slicer. it was a gift to the museum in honor of Abbie Hoffman. Huh?)
Feature: Make My Day: Gadgets
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