Design in Canada: Fifty Years from Tea Kettles to Task Chairs - Softcover

Rachel Gotlieb; Cora Golden

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1552636313 ISBN 13: 9781552636312

Publisher: Key Porter Books, 2004

Synopsis

Winner of the Alcuin Society Award for Excellence in Book Design in Canada.

Now available in paperback.

With a new introduction by renowned Canadian designer Karim Rashid.

The first major book of its kind, Design in Canada is a richly illustrated, fascinating portrait documenting more than fifty years of rich contemporary product design in this country. From the radical Project G stereo that every well-appointed, "bachelor pad" had to have, to the wedge-shaped Contempra phone that quickly convinced homeowners to replace their boring black telephones, Canadian design has entered our homes and shaped our lives. For the first time, we can look at these products through the eyes of the cutting edge designers who created them, and celebrate their achievements.

About this title

From the Inside Flap

A richly illustrated and fascinating portrait from two aficionados of Canadian design, and the first major book to identify and document more than fifty years of contemporary product design in Canada.

From the radical Project G stereo that every well-appointed, Pop-inspired “bachelor pad” had to have, to the wedge-shaped Contempra phone that quickly convinced homeowners to replace their boring black telephones, Canadian design has entered our homes and shaped our lives. Most of us have sat on one of the ubiquitous moulded plywood chairs that furnish every church basement and Legion, or bought a chromed dome kettle, or marvelled at how a garbage can was elevated to the status of a champagne bucket. For the first time, we can look at these products through the eyes of the designers who created them, and celebrate their achievements.

Design in Canada showcases designs that were destined for mass production, and covers everything from popular plastic dishes to refined high-style furniture. The book also features textiles, small appliances and lighting fixtures that have rarely been seen, or, in areas like consumer electronics and ceramics, that have not been as thoroughly documented.

The book also explores the movements and influences that have shaped design in Canada through time: from personal artistic challenges to the global juggernaut of modernism and beyond. Whether exploring post-war materials like plastic or aluminum, or finding ways to capture and tame new technology, Canadian designers have worked with imagination, style and an eye to the global market.

Magnificently illustrated, with extensive appendices providing a “who’s who” in the world of Canadian design, Design in Canada will be welcomed by everyone who shares an interest in design. Whether you are decorating your home, or are a professional or student involved in industrial, interior or architectural design, you will appreciate this comprehensive reference to more than a half-century of Canada’s rich design heritage.

From the Back Cover

“Timeless and necessary.... It is a measure of Design in Canada’s success that it seems both wholly unexpected and long overdue.” -- National Post

“From the glamorous to the humble.... The first comprehensive guide to the country’s rich design heritage.” -- Ottawa Citizen
From the Trade Paperback edition.

Edition details

• Publisher: Key Porter Books
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 1552636313
• ISBN 13: 9781552636312
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 277