Michael Graves

American architect and master designer Michael Graves (1934–2015) was a monumental titan of Postmodernism, revered for breaking the austere taboos of modern functionalism with classical metaphor, figurative whimsy, and vibrant color palettes. A member of the "New York Five" and a professor of architecture at Princeton University, Graves designed buildings and domestic tools of global influence. Graves achieved worldwide design immortality through his historic collaboration with Italian design factory Alessi. In 1985, he designed the 9093 Kettle—featuring a mirror-polished stainless-steel cone, a blue polyamide ribbed handle, and a playful red bird whistle that chirps when the water boils—becoming Alessi's greatest commercial bestseller. For Target, he designed over 2,000 accessible domestic products that democratized good design.