If you’ve ever owned a square plastic dinner plate, chances are you’re familiar with Luntz’s work. The 93-year-old revolutionized dinnerware in the 1950s by leading a creative team of artists to design more modern concepts. Patterns such as pastoral etchings and Asian motifs on square moldable plates then influenced lines of wallpaper, drapery, towels and linens at major companies such as JCPenney. It also garnered her design awards from New York’s Museum of Modern Art and the Boston Institute of Contemporary Art.
I was headed for a singing career. During the summer, when school was out, I had a lesson almost every day. So I was good.
I sang until I got famous as an artist — I had to give it up. It became a wonderful job, but it was a big job.
I had just been married at the end of World War II and my husband bought a plastic molding company. Someone suggested to him this new plastic material.
He said, “I don’t have a product like this, but that sounds great. Will you design it?” So I said, “Yeah.”
I just wanted to do something different. You can’t do square on china. So doing a square plate was a great idea.
There was a china and glass international show in Atlantic City every year. So we asked if we could get a space. They wouldn’t let us in.
So we went to the hotel across the street and rented some rooms and set up a show in the hotel.
It was a sensation. No one had seen a show like it. It got more attention than you could believe.
My name was known in the industry very well, and if you asked how I felt about walking into a show and hearing someone say, “There’s Joan Luntz,” I couldn’t quite believe it happened.
My husband allowed me to work. I was the boss, and it was my time. Sometimes it was a holiday, and I was at the studio sometimes for a couple of hours.
I had no one to answer to. No one to say you weren’t able to get that done. I had to say that to myself.
Smiling is very important. If you have troubles, smile. It helps.
Have confidence in yourself and don’t let people discourage you, unless it’s valid discouragement.
Recognize what’s really good of you, good for you, what you can do, recognize your own talents, and push those. Don’t give up on them.
I don’t move as fast as I used to.
I regret that I don’t get out more to be with people, but I have to realize I’m not as young as I was 50 years ago.
