Today, modern design has become a powerful industry, but hardly fabulous. While both of our awardees are absolutely fabulous, they are so in very different ways. Our editor is revolutionizing print with fabulous publications: weighty, over -thick, new in layout and sequence - all with a large number of copies. 

Our furniture maker, on the other hand, exquisitely crafts single designs - sometimes in impressive numbers, like the 50 matched dining chairs for a Duchess, or a display case for hundreds of privately held watches, or gigantic wood sculptures - all unique and costly, all fabulous, while very different from Cindy Allen's huge editions.

Each awardee is young beyond their actual years. Bravo to both!"

Cindy Allen, was introduced by architect Calvin Tsao who called his induction to her Hall of Fame ”life changing”.  “Hi guys. It’s a scandal, I’m accepting an award at Hearst” is how Cindy opening her moving speech extolling the industry that she leads.   Beginning with her first issue (released on 9.11) through the magazines 75th anniversary issue (which included Jack Laren) and now with 250 issues under her leadership, she shared how she was the magazine’s first woman issue and her love for the industry, "I feel very lucky to live and breathe and design with you all. It is the place where my work, my soul, and my ideas are all rewarded."

Dianne Benson, chair of the LongHouse Board of Trustees was next saying, Now that is a hard act to follow!”  However it was Robert Taubman and Michael Lewis who both introduced Joseph Walsh. At Lewis’s suggestion  Taubman commissioned remarkable sculptural furnishings from Walsh, “I now sleep, dine, and sit on art from Joseph and live in his splendor ”