"[1] IMoDD has over 9,000 objects in its permanent collection,[2][3] consisting of work by contemporary artists as well as the leading designers for industry, with an additional focus on fine art referencing dining.

Margaret L. Carney established the International Museum of Dinnerware Design in Ann Arbor in 2012, based on her love of the work of the leading designers for industry, including that of Eva Zeisel, Glidden Parker, Russel Wright, Ben Seibel, Fong Chow, Viktor and Don Schreckengost, along with functional pottery by contemporary artists.

The permanent collection features international dinnerware from ancient to futuristic times," and the objects are made of an array of different materials – from ceramic, glass, and metal to plastic, lacquer, fiber, paper, wood, yarn, and more.

[9][10][11][5] The collection features historic dinnerware made by the leading designers for industry, including work by Eva Zeisel, Russel Wright, Ben Seibel, Arne Jacobsen, Glidden Parker, Frederick Carder, Frederick Hurten Rhead, Viktor and Don Schreckengost, Michael Lax, A.D. Copier, Fong Chow, and Shinichiro Ogata.

The collection also includes masterpieces by hundreds of contemporary artists such as Warren MacKenzie, Marie Woo, Val Cushing, John Neely, Josh DeWeese, Léopold Foulem, Ruth Duckworth, Chris Staley, Jeff Oestreich, and Otto and Vivika Heino.

[13] Other IMoDD exhibits include:[8] The museum hosts educational programming to accompany its exhibits, including public lectures hosted by SOFA Chicago in 2012 and 2013, NCECA (National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts) in 2013 and 2016,[51] the Wedgwood Society of Washington, D.C.,[52] the Haviland International Foundation, the Washtenaw County Historical Society, the Culinary Historians of Ann Arbor,[53] the Ann Arbor District Library,[54] University of Michigan Retirees, the Culinary Historians of Chicago,[28] the Hall China Convention, and other specialized groups.

Events cover a wide variety of topics: Since 2015, the International Museum of Dinnerware Design has published an annual membership newsletter, MENU, which details the exhibitions, recent acquisitions, and educational programs IMoDD put on that year.