Disposable Cutlery
Knife, Fork and Spoon in a Sheath
1968 (designed), 1970 (made)
1968 (designed), 1970 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
EKCO (from Eric Kirkham Cole Limited) was a British electronics company producing radio and television sets from 1924 until 1960. Expanding into plastic production for its own use, Ekco Plastics produced both radio cases and later domestic plastic products; the plastics company became Lin Pac Mouldings Ltd.
David Harman Powell was born in 1931 and educated at Southend School of Art 1946-9 where he won a travel scholarship enabling him to tour Europe, particularly Sweden, Denmark and Italy.
Industrial drawing experience at Ekco Ltd led to a permanent post in the design office under 'Jake' White and then, from 1953-60, at British Industrial Plastics under 'Woody' Woodfull. Powell returned to Ekco in 1960 to take over from Martyn Rowlands as chief designer of their Plastics Division.
Powell won the 1955 Horners' design award for an all-plastics greenhouse, the 1968 Design Council's Duke of Edinburgh Award for Elegant Design with the Ekco Nova range of tableware and the 1970 Council of Industrial Design Award for Ekco Nova flatware.
Powell's innovative and stylish award winning plastic objects played a major part in the acceptance of the material as a serious alternative to traditional materials, and in many cases as the most suitable material for new products.
From: Museum of Design in Plastics
David Harman Powell was born in 1931 and educated at Southend School of Art 1946-9 where he won a travel scholarship enabling him to tour Europe, particularly Sweden, Denmark and Italy.
Industrial drawing experience at Ekco Ltd led to a permanent post in the design office under 'Jake' White and then, from 1953-60, at British Industrial Plastics under 'Woody' Woodfull. Powell returned to Ekco in 1960 to take over from Martyn Rowlands as chief designer of their Plastics Division.
Powell won the 1955 Horners' design award for an all-plastics greenhouse, the 1968 Design Council's Duke of Edinburgh Award for Elegant Design with the Ekco Nova range of tableware and the 1970 Council of Industrial Design Award for Ekco Nova flatware.
Powell's innovative and stylish award winning plastic objects played a major part in the acceptance of the material as a serious alternative to traditional materials, and in many cases as the most suitable material for new products.
From: Museum of Design in Plastics
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 4 parts.
|
| Title | Disposable Cutlery (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | styrene acrylonitrile co-polymer |
| Brief description | Disposable cutlery, designed by David Harman Powell and manufactured by Ekco Plastics Ltd, England, Southend, 1970. |
| Physical description | Disposable cutlery, styrene acrylonitrile co-polymer. Three piece cutlery set, the fork and spoon handles, grooved with ridged edges, the bowls dipped, the spoon, oval, the fork with three prongs. The knife handle a straight rod terminating with a triangular blade. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Production type | Mass produced |
| Credit line | Gift of the manufacturer |
| Object history | Historical significance: Winner of the Design Centre Award in 1970. Duke of Edinburgh Award for Elegant Design, 1968. |
| Summary | EKCO (from Eric Kirkham Cole Limited) was a British electronics company producing radio and television sets from 1924 until 1960. Expanding into plastic production for its own use, Ekco Plastics produced both radio cases and later domestic plastic products; the plastics company became Lin Pac Mouldings Ltd. David Harman Powell was born in 1931 and educated at Southend School of Art 1946-9 where he won a travel scholarship enabling him to tour Europe, particularly Sweden, Denmark and Italy. Industrial drawing experience at Ekco Ltd led to a permanent post in the design office under 'Jake' White and then, from 1953-60, at British Industrial Plastics under 'Woody' Woodfull. Powell returned to Ekco in 1960 to take over from Martyn Rowlands as chief designer of their Plastics Division. Powell won the 1955 Horners' design award for an all-plastics greenhouse, the 1968 Design Council's Duke of Edinburgh Award for Elegant Design with the Ekco Nova range of tableware and the 1970 Council of Industrial Design Award for Ekco Nova flatware. Powell's innovative and stylish award winning plastic objects played a major part in the acceptance of the material as a serious alternative to traditional materials, and in many cases as the most suitable material for new products. From: Museum of Design in Plastics |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | CIRC.336 to C-1970 |
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| Record created | April 27, 2011 |
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