Nelson was an important modernist whose work cut across the fields of interior, industrial and exhibition design.  Nelson studied architecture at Yale University in the 1920s, and in the next two decades earned a strong reputation as a writer on design for Architectural Forum, Interiors and Fortune. 

He was one of the most powerful forces behind the development of this century's American design aesthetic. As a thinker, writer, organizer and designer, Nelson commandeered a string of influential positions and brought about a widespread and clear-sighted reevaluation of how furniture was marketed and how using space well and thoughtfully could ameliorate modern living. In the 1952 Herman Miller catalogue he wrote that the pieces exhibited should be, "a permanent collection...in the sense that it will not be scrapped for each market or for each new 'trend.'" As almost every contributing designer and design has become a popular icon for the look of that period and is still showing up on the interior landscape today, it becomes apparent that Nelson achieved his goal.