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Object Timeline

1933

  • Work on this object began.

2015

2020

2024

  • You found it!

Model 4083A Clock Clock

This is a clock. It was designed by Gilbert Rohde and manufactured by Howard Miller Clock Company. It is dated 1933 and we acquired it in 2015. Its medium is glass, chrome-plated metal, metal, enamel. It is a part of the Product Design and Decorative Arts department.

First displayed at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair, this electric clock was designed, according to Rohde, to personify simplicity. He streamlined the form, reducing it to its essential parts, removing even the numbers in favor of small spheres to echo the clock’s overall geometric aesthetic. The blue mirror-glass face is its primary decorative aspect, giving this clock an overall machine-like appearance.

This object was featured in our Object of the Week series in a post titled True Blue.

This object was donated by George R. Kravis II. It is credited Gift of George R. Kravis II.

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Our curators have highlighted 1 object that are related to this one.

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Its dimensions are

H x W x D: 16.5 × 15.2 × 7.6 cm (6 1/2 in. × 6 in. × 3 in.)

Cite this object as

Model 4083A Clock Clock; Designed by Gilbert Rohde (American, 1894–1944); Manufactured by Herman Miller Clock Company (United States); glass, chrome-plated metal, metal, enamel; H x W x D: 16.5 × 15.2 × 7.6 cm (6 1/2 in. × 6 in. × 3 in.); Gift of George R. Kravis II; 2015-5-3

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If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/68813993/ |title=Model 4083A Clock Clock |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=14 November 2024 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>