Resumen de Industrial design in the museum: the case of the FN milking machine, c. 1947
An essay examining the way in which an industrial object can transition into being a museum piece, focusing specifically on a milking machine made by the manufacturer Fabrique Nationale d'Armes de Guerre (FN) in Herstal, Belgium. The parameters of innovation and authorship associated with FN's device, which has been included in a museum collection since 1961, do not correspond to canonical ways of approaching decorative and fine arts. In fact, throughout its history, the object has moved from being a mere commodity generally used only by farmers to one endowed with cultural capital, obtaining a design award in 1957 in the first presentation of the Benelux-wide Signe d'Or.
