Charles Harrison and Ethan Bodnar: Two Design Careers Converge

Charles Harrison was an industrial designer for Sears starting in the 1960s who designed things like the View-Master, the gas-molded polypropylene trash can, and hundreds of other appliances and powertools, from Kenmore fridges to a portable phonograph. “It’s not how I became a great designer,” he says. “It’s becoming, I’m still becoming.” He grew up in Louisiana in a segregated community and attended The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, which just happened to be one of the only schools that offered degrees in industrial design at the time. He tried to get a job at Sears in the 1950s they would not hire him because he was black. But a few years later, they did offer him a job, and when he finally landed at Sears it was the largest manufacturer of products in the world. He traveled extensively, over saw the design of over 700 products. His book, A Life’s Design, is an amazing journey through his years in the profession, ending with being honored by both AIGA and the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Awards for lifetime achievement awards.

Charles Harrison

Harrison designed the iconic Viewmaster

As comparison, we have Ethan Bodnar, a 19 year old. I’ll say that again. 19 years old. The Hartford Art School student thanks AIGA for giving him community and connecting him with other designers. The child of a graphic designer, he started his own layout work using Adobe Pagemaker and designing logos. In high school he discovered the online community of designers. He even put the word KERN on his backpack and happily explained to people what it meant. In his short career, he’s done signage for his high school, posters, an art installation, and the launch of the blog Synthesis. But it’s the personal projects that really drive him and because he loves them so much, HE HAS ALSO WRITTEN A BOOK. At 19. Repeat: He is 19 years old. It’s called Creative Grab Bag: Inspiring Challenges for Designers, Artists and Illustrators and it’s a collection of exercises that help launch those personal projects.

Ethan Bodnar’s first book, Creative Grab Bag

Check out our videos with Charles Harrison and Ethan Bodnar for more great stories from their careers.