Design History: Understanding Theory and Method

(Hardback)

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Description

Design History has become a complex and wide-ranging discipline. It now examines artefacts from conception to development, production, mediation, and consumption. Over the last few decades, the discipline has developed a diverse range of theories and methodologies for the analysis of objects. Design History presents the most comprehensive overview and guide to these developments. The book first traces the development of the discipline, explaining how it draws from Art History, Industrial Design, Cultural History and Material Culture Studies. The core of the book then analyses the seminal methodologies used in Design History today. The final section highlights the key issues concerning knowledge and meaning in Design. Throughout, the aim is to present a concise and accessible introduction to this complex field. A map to the intellectual landscape of Design History, the book will be an invaluable guide for students and a very useful reference for scholars.

Reviews

"This essential guide to the field of design history offers a nuanced survey of ongoing debates, suggests the use of new interdisciplinary performance theories, and clarifies epistemological issues surrounding design and modernization." Jeffrey L. Meikle, University of Texas at Austin "Addressing the various changes which have occurred in the writing of design history since its emergence as a discrete discipline, Design History is an accessible yet authoritative analysis of a variety of methodological frameworks, assessing their suitability and relative merits for the design historian...A massively useful resource." Paul Atkinson, Sheffield Hallam University "This book will be of great value to scholars in the field of Design as an overview and critique of a highly interdisciplinary field. It will be of even more value to students for its explanation of the historiography and methodology of Design Studies and for the way it strengthens our understanding of Design History." Anders V. Munch, University of Southern Denmark

Author Bio

Kjetil Fallan is Associate Professor of Design History in the Dept of Philosophy, Classics, History of Art and Ideas at the University of Oslo.