The Language of Things - Hardcover
We live in a world drowning in objects. But what do they tell us about ourselves? In "The Language of Things", Deyan Sudjic charts our relationship - both innocent and knowing - with all things designed. From the opulent excesses of the catwalk, or the technical brilliance of a laptop computer, to the subtle refinement of a desk lamp, he shows how we can be manipulated and seduced by our possessions. Sudjic delivers an exhilarating insider's history of design as he introduces us to the world's most original innovators and reveals the hidden meanings in their work.How did the design of a pistol influence a car? Why did a chair make a cafe the most fashionable place in Paris? What can we learn from a banknote, a police uniform or a typeface? And why can't any of us decide what size to wear our trousers? In an age when the word 'designer' has become synonymous with the cynical and manipulative, Sudjic examines the qualities behind successful design and explores the conflicting tensions between high art and mass production. Brilliant and courageous, "The Language of Things" defines the visual vocabulary of our time and gives us a powerful new way of seeing the world.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Review:
An elegant, witty and free-ranging survey of industrial product design from Thomas Chippendale's ponderous 18th-century manor-house furnishings to Jonathan Ive's sprightly Macintosh iBooks (Telegraph)
Sudjic's book rebukes designers for their arrogance and increasing self-importance ... readable, sharp and worthwhile (FT)
The Language of Things is a happy trot through the colourful landscape formed by design's eternal alternation between use and allure (Evening Standard)
Deyan Sudjic presents us with a nightmare vision of a world drowning in objects ... witty, well observed and wide-ranging (Guardian)
As a confessional, the book is witty and honest, and Deyan Sudjic remains one of our most insightful commentators (Royal Academy magazine)
Articulate and wonderfully knowledgeable ... a very nice object in itself ... much in here for anyone who takes an interest in the world around us (Time Out)
About the Author:
Sudjic's book rebukes designers for their arrogance and increasing self-importance ... readable, sharp and worthwhile (FT)
The Language of Things is a happy trot through the colourful landscape formed by design's eternal alternation between use and allure (Evening Standard)
Deyan Sudjic presents us with a nightmare vision of a world drowning in objects ... witty, well observed and wide-ranging (Guardian)
As a confessional, the book is witty and honest, and Deyan Sudjic remains one of our most insightful commentators (Royal Academy magazine)
Articulate and wonderfully knowledgeable ... a very nice object in itself ... much in here for anyone who takes an interest in the world around us (Time Out)
Deyan Sudjic is Director of the Design Museum. He was born in London, and studied architecture in Edinburgh. He has worked as a critic for the Observer and The Sunday Times, as the editor of Domus in Milan, as the director of the Venice Architecture Biennale, and as a curator in Glasgow, Istanbul and Copenhagen. He is the author of B is for Bauhaus, The Language of Things and The Edifice Complex.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherAllen Lane
- Publication date2008
- ISBN 10 1846140056
- ISBN 13 9781846140051
- BindingHardcover
- Number of pages224
- Rating
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