Bakelite in Yonkers: Pioneering the Age of Plastics May 5, 2010

Every day we come into contact with synthetic materials so familiar to us that life without them would be hard to imagine. 'Bakelite in Yonkers' is a dynamic exhibition of more than 300 objects that show the development of Bakelite, a new material vital to an array of twentieth century consumer products, including ash trays, toilet seats, door handles, blocks, bracelets, clocks, dinnerware, flashlights, toasters, kitchen mixers, castanets, and toy cars, to name a few! Inventor Leo Baekeland invented Bakelite at Snug Rock, his home in Yonkers between 1905 and 1907. Pioneering and brilliant, he quickly realized the scientific and commercial value of his discovery. First an inexpensive alternative to precious materials such as ivory, this exhibition traces how Bakelite soon reached the height of popularity as a key material in Art Deco objects, and was a favorite material of designers from Norman Bel Geddes and Raymond Loewy to Philippe Starck.