First Lady Michelle Obama will celebrate the 2011 National Design Awards with a White House ceremony for the winners and finalists of the awards. In support of the First Lady's emphasis on education and outreach to the Washington, D.C. community, the award winners will participate in an education program for local high school students before the luncheon.
"The First Lady is an influential champion of design and arts education, and we are honored to once again have her support as honorary patron of the National Design Awards," said Museum Director Bill Moggridge.
The annual National Design Awards celebrate design in various disciplines as a vital humanistic tool in shaping the world. The awards are accompanied each year by a variety of public education programs, including special events, panel discussions and workshops.
Several of the National Design Award winners and finalists will take part in a Teen Design Fair in Washington Sept. 13, which serves to introduce high school students to careers in design. The students will meet one-on-one with leading designers in the fields of fashion, industrial design, architecture, multimedia and graphic design, including Matthew Carter, Jamie Drake, Tobias Frere-Jones, Kathryn Gustafson, Steven Heller and Jonathan Hoefler. A keynote address will be given by Tim Gunn, chief creative officer at Liz Claiborne Inc. and co-host of Lifetime's Project Runway.