Pretense Design: Surface Over Substance (Design Thinking, Design Theory)
Language: English
Published by The MIT Press, 2019
- Hardcover
- Used
Seller: Equipment for Living, Aliquippa, PA, U.S.A.Equipment for Living
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- Title
- Pretense Design: Surface Over Substance (Design Thinking, Design Theory)
- Author
- Mollerup, Per
- Publisher
- The MIT Press
- Publication year
- 2019
- Condition
- very_good
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 0262039486
- ISBN 13
- 9780262039482
Pretense design pretends to be something that it is not. Pretense design includes all kinds of designed objects: a pair of glasses that looks like a fashion accessory rather than a medical necessity, a hotel in Las Vegas that simulates a Venetian ambience complete with canals and gondolas, boiler plates that look like steel but are vinyl. In this book, Danish designer Per Mollerup defines and describes a ubiquitous design category that until now has not had a name: designed objects with an intentional discrepancy between surface and substance, between appearance and reality. Pretense design, he shows us, is a type of material rhetoric; it is a way for physical objects to speak persuasively, most often to benefit users but sometimes to deceive them.
After explaining the means and the meanings of pretense design, Mollerup describes four pretense design applications, providing a range of examples for each: beautification, amusement, substitution, and deception. Beautification, he explains, includes sunless tanning, high heels, and even sporty accessories for a family car. Amusement includes forms of irrational otherness—columns that don't hold anything up, an old building's façade that hides a new building, a new Chinese town that mimics an old European town. Substitution pretends to be a natural thing: plastic laminate is a substitute for wood, Corian a substitute for marble, and prosthetics substitute for human organs. Deception doesn't just bend the truth; it suspends it. Soldiers wear camouflage to hide; hunters use decoys to attract their prey; malware hides in a harmless program only to wreak havoc on a user's computer. With Pretense Design, Per Mollerup adds a new concept to design thinking.
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Equipment for Living is a socially conscious bookstore located in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania. More than just a retail business, we define ourselves as "a business with a conscience" - committed to fostering community development, meaningful employment, and urban revitalization in Western Pennsylvania. OUR MISSION: Equipment for Living operates on the belief that responsible entrepreneurship can be a powerful force for positive change. We provide valuable retail services while creating meaningful work opportunities that serve as sites of training and mentoring. Our Youth Employment Initiative specifically targets local residents aged 16-25, offering employment, skill development, and guidance during the critical transition from youth to adulthood. We measure success not just in profits, but in empowering our employees to pursue their career aspirations and life goals - even when that means moving on to other opportunities. OUR STORY: Founded in 2008 and opening our physical storefront in 2012 after extensive community-led renovations, Equipment for Living has grown from an online book venture into a cornerstone of Aliquippa's revitalization efforts. We've deliberately chosen to establish our business in this former steel town, recognizing that true community poverty isn't just about lacking economic resources - it's about lacking opportunities, connections, education, and hope. OUR INVENTORY: Equipment for Living offers a refreshingly different retail experience from typical chain bookstores. While big-box stores stock only high-demand, profitable bestsellers in predictable arrangements, we curate a wide and constantly evolving selection that reflects the unique character of our community. Our diverse inventory includes books across all genres and eras, audiobooks, CDs, DVDs, VHS tapes, vinyl records, and video games. We embrace the philosophy that "if you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking." While we may not always have the latest bestseller in stock, we guarantee a carefully selected range of high-quality products you won't easily find elsewhere - true equipment for living a rich, thoughtful life.…
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