 A towering figure in the world of design education, Frank Alvah Parsons encouraged the rise of the design profession in America, trained many of the leading commercial artists of his day, and created and disseminated influential theories of design. Because of his importance, the school he directed, then known as the New York School of Fine and Applied Art, was posthumously renamed for him. The prestige of Parsons The New School of Design owes much to Frank Alvah Parsons and the ways he developed the school's curriculum.
Frank Alvah Parsons was born in Chesterfield, Massachusetts, on April 1, 1866. He attended Wesleyan Academy, and then traveled in Europe for three years, studying art in England, France, Italy, and Austria. The 1890s found him lecturing in Boston and its vicinity.
In 1901, he came to New York to assume the position of instructor in fine art at the Horace Mann School of Teachers College, Columbia University. Around the same time, he began his studies at Columbia, working towards a B.S. degree in art education with a design component. He received the degree in 1905.
Parsons' career had a turning point when he was hired during the 1904-5 academic year to teach at the New York School of Art. Founded in 1896 by the famed Impressionist painter William Merritt Chase, that school had an emphasis on painting, drawing, and sculpture. Chase pegged Parsons to radicalize the school's curriculum by introducing design, a field often more lucrative than fine arts. Parsons began his tenure there by teaching theory of design, costume design, and interior decoration.
As stated by his students, Parsons was a magnetic and enthusiastic teacher, with a vivid personality. His satirical humor entertained his listeners while he introduced his thoughtful approaches to design. Through his lectures, he had a practical influence on his students, inspiring them to pursue beauty in all their works.
Continuing to teach at the New York School of Art, Parsons also co managed the school, with Susan F. Bissell, from September 1907 through December 1910. In his first year as an administrator, he established departments in costume design and interior decoration. Three years later came a department in graphic design, then known as commercial illustration. These departments were remarkable since they were the first full professional programs offered in these areas in America. In 1909, Parsons reincorporated the school as the New York School of Fine and Applied Art, so as to reflect the institution's dual curriculum.
Frank Alvah Parsons became the sole director of the school in 1911. In the following years, he continued to expand the scope of the school, establishing, for example, a program in photography in 1916.
Parsons even broadened the school's reach by opening a Paris branch in 1921. This branch was of major importance because it encouraged an exchange of ideas and trends between New York and Paris as students and faculty traveled between the two schools. In 1925, Parsons attended the Paris Exposition of Decorative Art as a Delegate at Large for the United States. Through this visit, he absorbed the art deco aesthetic, which he then introduced to his students back in New York. In 1927, the French government acknowledged his work in advancing Franco-American relations, by making him a Knight of the Legion of Honor. Also of note were the special programs in England (1923-27) and Italy (1924-38) that Parsons established as offshoots of the Paris branch. His mission was to expand the school's scope and give his students a wide introduction to European art and design.
As the school's leader, Parsons issued sprightly circulars to his faculty directing them to have "new, fresh, progressive ideas" and insisting that it was "emphatically necessary" that their appearance be "chic." As a teacher, he expanded his responsibilities to include a role as a critic, reviewing student work. A slew of noted designers were educated under Parsons. They include Claire McCardell, the pioneer of ready-to-wear clothing in America; Eleanor McMillan, the founder of the illustrious interior design firm that still bears her name; Gilbert Adrian, the creator of the costumes for The Wizard of Oz; and Joseph Platt, the set designer for Gone with the Wind and the artist behind Whitman's Sampler chocolate box.
Parsons made his ideas known widely, beyond the confines of the school he managed. From the early days of his association with the school, he was in high demand as a lecturer by museums, universities, trade and civic organizations, private schools, and women's clubs. Beginning in 1911, for example, he established a lecture series at the Metropolitan Museum, which continued on an annual basis during his lifetime. He also lectured throughout the United States and Canada and in Italy, Spain, France, Holland, and Belgium. He spoke on such subjects as "The How and Why of an Artistic Home," "Democracy, Feminism, and the New Art," and "Art, Dress, and Common-Sense."
Parsons also wrote several books on design that were used widely in classrooms across the country. Most went through multiple editions. In 1912, he published The Principles of Advertising Arrangement. This was followed, in 1915, by Advertising, Its Principles and Practice, a collaborative effort. The year 1921 brought The Art Appeal in Display Advertising. His work on interior design, Interior Decoration, Its Principles and Practice, was issued in 1915; and on fashion, The Psychology of Dress, in 1920.
In his classes, lectures, and books, Parsons delineated his philosophies of design. He emphasized the idea of good taste, which he equated with art and beauty. Good taste, for him, was "an actual asset in life." It could be cultivated and learned and was based on universal principles. One such principle was that of harmony, which Parsons described as the proper choice, combination, and arrangement of design elements. Another was that of simplicity, which involved eliminating excessive and unnecessary ornamentation.
Still another was that of appropriateness, which meant that a work of design had to fit its purpose and function. "Any chair," he said, "that a man cannot sit down in, is not a chair." Because these principles could be taught, Parsons believed that good design was democratic and accessible to everyone. He elaborated that "art is not for the few, for the talented, for the genius, for the rich, nor the church." In fact, art was more than just the traditional fine arts, and encompassed everyday man-made creations. No less than painting and sculpture, commercial design was also subject to the principles of good taste. According to Parsons' dictum, "industry is the nation's life, art is the quality of beauty in expression and industrial art is the corner stone of our national art."
On May 25, 1930, Parsons died of heart illness, at the age of 64. His work was not finished, but he left behind an important legacy. In 1941, to honor Parsons' contribution to the school, William Odom, his successor as director, renamed the institution "Parsons School of Design."
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