Surface Tensions: Surface, Finish and the Meaning of Objects (Studies in Design and Material Culture)

ISBN 10: 0719087511 / ISBN 13: 9780719087516

Published by Manchester University Press, 2013

About this Item

Most items will be dispatched the same or the next working day. An apparently unread copy in perfect condition. Dust cover is intact with no nicks or tears. Spine has no signs of creasing. Pages are clean and not marred by notes or folds of any kind.

Seller Inventory # rev7645098445

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Surface Tensions: Surface, Finish and the Meaning of Objects (Studies in Design and Material Culture)
• Publisher: Manchester University Press
• Publication Date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0719087511
• ISBN 13: 9780719087516
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Like New
• Weight: 620 grams

About this title

Synopsis

Surfaces are often held to be of lesser consequence than ‘deeper’ or more ‘substantive’ aspects of artworks and objects. Yet it is also possible to conceive of the surface in more positive terms: as a site where complex forces meet. Surfaces can be theorized as membranes, protective shells, sensitive skins, even thicknesses in their own right. The surface is not so much a barrier to content as an opportunity for encounter: in new objects, the surface is the site of qualities of finish, texture, the site of tactile interaction, the last point of contact between object and maker, and the first point of contact between object and user.

Surface tensions includes sixteen essays that explore this theoretically uncharted terrain. The subjects range widely: domestic maintenance; avant-garde fashion; the faking of antiques; postmodern architecture and design; contemporary film costume. Of particular emphasis within the volume are textiles, which are among the most complex and culturally rich materialisations of surface. As a whole, the book provides insights into the whole lifecycle of objects, not just their condition when new.

About the Authors

Glenn Adamson is Head of Research at the Victoria and Albert Museum

Victoria Kelley is Reader in Design and Material Culture History at University for the Creative Arts, and teaches in the School of Fashion and Textile Design, Central Saint Saint Martins College of Art and Design