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Reflections from the Sea is a collection of stained glass and shell mirrors many years in the making.

Cooper Woodring has spent his life surrounded by shells, art and creative people. His mother was a renowned artist, regularly bringing home blue ribbons from the Sanibel Shell Show for her innovative pieces. One of her shell creations was featured as a UNICEF greeting card, and many pieces are in museum collections. Her sister, Cooper's aunt, was a conchologist (a person who studies mollusks and seashells). The sisters were also accomplished painters and world travelers. Both women and their extended families spent as much time as possible on beaches and islands, lovingly admiring shells and aquatic life.

Cooper's lifelong dedication to justice and serving his community was fostered by his father's service, as both the Governor of Kansas and Secretary of Defense under Roosevelt. Cooper served two terms as the Mayor of Plandome, NY, where he was also a member of the Volunteer Fire Department.

Cooper earned a Bachelor's degree in Industrial Design from the University of Kansas (go Jayhawks!) and a Master's Degree in Industrial Design from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He spent a majority of his career as a Product Designer in New York City, striving to enrich the beauty and visual impact of everyday products from tire treads to stereos to kitchen appliances. Consumer products that he has designed can be found in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York (a paint bucket), as well as the Smithsonian Institute in Washington DC (a microwave).

He received an Appointment from President Ronald Reagan to head the United States information Agency's Cultural Exchange Mission, "Design in America", behind the then Iron Curtain; he has testified before Congress in support of the Industrial Design Innovation and Technology Act (HR1790 & S791), and he has been a regular presenter at the United States Patent and Trademark's annual Design Day.

He is a past President of the Industrial Designers Society of America, as well as a lifelong Fellow. He has received the Industrial Design profession's highest award, IDSA's Personal Recognition Award, previously awarded to only nine other designers, including the legendary Raymond Loewy.

For the past two decades Cooper has served in Federal Courts as an Expert Witness in design patent litigation. He testified for Apple in the Apple v. Samsung groundbreaking design patent infringement case, which Apple won. He and Perry J. Saidman, Esq., have combined their love of design and of patents to offer continuing education to fellow designers through their course "How to Serve as an Expert Witness in Design Patent Litigation".

Cooper holds dozens of patents, and has most recently designed the first nesting, injection molded, rocking chair.

Cooper moved to the Ocean State to enjoy his retirement. He spends his free time rediscovering his family's love of shells and all the reflections of the sea.

Cooper Woodring, Artist

M, H, Cooper, H, & M Woodring

Outside the White House, circa 1940