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Collection by Alex Ronan

George Nelson’s Ball Clock May Not Be His After All

Put together a bunch of great designers, heavy drinking, and some sketch paper, and the next morning you’ll end up with at least one great design. The problem? No one will remember who made it.

The Ball Clock is credited to George Nelson Associates, but even Nelson isn’t sure who made it. Isamu Noguchi, Bucky Fuller, Irving Harper, and George Nelson spent an alcohol-fueled night goofing off and one-upping each other with outrageous sketches. The next day, Nelson discovered the Ball Clock amongst the drawings. “I don’t know to this day who cooked it up,” he’s since said, adding, “I know it wasn’t me. It might have been Irving, but he didn’t think so.”

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The Ball Clock was the first of more than 150 clocks designed by George Nelson Associates for the Howard Miller Clock Company. Production started in the late 40s and continued through the 80s. Vitra still produces a number of the Nelson clocks, including the Sunburst, the Eye, and the Sunflower.
The Ball Clock was the first of more than 150 clocks designed by George Nelson Associates for the Howard Miller Clock Company. Production started in the late 40s and continued through the 80s. Vitra still produces a number of the Nelson clocks, including the Sunburst, the Eye, and the Sunflower.
A Nelson Ball Clock and subway sign decorate one hallway.
A Nelson Ball Clock and subway sign decorate one hallway.
Mark Neely and Paul Kefalides’s living room is decked out with the couple’s vintage finds, including a Hans Wegner Sawback chair (the fur throw obscures an area needing repair), a George Nelson Ball Clock, a DF-2000 cabinet by Raymond Loewy, a light designed by Greta Von Nessen, and a suite of Brian Willshire wooden sculptures, one of Neely’s many collections.
Mark Neely and Paul Kefalides’s living room is decked out with the couple’s vintage finds, including a Hans Wegner Sawback chair (the fur throw obscures an area needing repair), a George Nelson Ball Clock, a DF-2000 cabinet by Raymond Loewy, a light designed by Greta Von Nessen, and a suite of Brian Willshire wooden sculptures, one of Neely’s many collections.
In this Parisian home, the Ball Clock is mounted on a kitchen wall just above the children’s height markings. According to Nelson, the clock became an all-time best seller when “suddenly it was decided by Mrs. America that this was the clock to put in your kitchen. Why the kitchen, I don’t know. But every ad that showed a kitchen for years after that had a Ball Clock in it.”
In this Parisian home, the Ball Clock is mounted on a kitchen wall just above the children’s height markings. According to Nelson, the clock became an all-time best seller when “suddenly it was decided by Mrs. America that this was the clock to put in your kitchen. Why the kitchen, I don’t know. But every ad that showed a kitchen for years after that had a Ball Clock in it.”