This just in: earlier today, Bill Moggridge, Director of the Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, announced the winners and finalists of the 2011 National Design Awards Program.As the nation's design museum, Cooper-Hewitt raises awareness that design is everywhere. The work of this year's National Design Awards winners represents extraordinary solutions to the design problems central to the landscape of daily life, from how we dress, shape our personal and private spaces, frame communication and interact with the world at large.

The full list of winners and finalists:

Photo Credit: Steve Marsel; Courtesy of Matthew Carter

The Lifetime Achievement award—recognizing an individual who has made a long-term contribution to the practice of design—goes to Matthew Carter. He has been designing typefaces for some five decades now, from hand-cut to digital, not to mention Linotype to Bitstream to his current foundry, Carter & Cone Type Inc.

Photo Credit: Baden Copeland; Courtesy of Steve Heller

The Design Mind award—recognizing an individual or firm that has affected a shift in design thinking or practice through writing, research and scholarship—goes to Steven Heller. His broad approach to design and criticism includes editorial design, history, criticism and education, to name a few of his research interests, which he has explored as author and editor of 130+ books on graphic design, art and culture.

Courtesy of Knoll, OXO, Design that Matters

Corporate & Institutional Achievement Winner: Knoll Finalists: Design that Matters || OXO

Photo Credits: Lajos Geenen; courtesy Dan Rockhill; Shuli Sade

Architecture Design Winner: Architecture Research Office Finalists: Dan Rockhill || Weiss/Manfredi

Photo Credits: Thea Dickman; Andy Clymer; courtesy of Project Projects

Communication Design Winner: Rick Valicenti Finalists: Hoefler & Frere-Jones || Project Projects

Photo Credits: Rankin; Daniel King; Tyler Rose

Fashion Design Winner: J. Mendel Inc. Finalists: Jason Wu || Prabal Gurung

Photo Credits: Anne Jackson; Jennifer Heath; Ariel Efron

Interaction Design Winner: Ben Fry Finalists: Chris Milk || Local Projects

Photo Credits: courtesy of Shelton, Mindel & Associates; Greg Endries; Marcus Hanschen

Interior Design Winner: Shelton, Mindel & Associates Finalists: Clive Wilkinson Architects || Aidlin Darling Design

Photo Credits: Julie Harmsen; Miller Mobley; Scott Lewis

Landscape Architecture Winner: Gustafson Guthrie Nichol Finalists: Tom Leader || Margie Ruddick

Photo Credits: Richard Davia; Leslie Williamson; courtesy of RKS

Product Design Winner: Continuum Finalists: Heath Ceramics || RKS