Revivals Reconsidering The Past In The Decorative Arts And Design

Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the ICDAD - International Committee for Museums and Collections of Decorative Arts and Design. Online, 21-23 October 2021. Publisher: ICOM - International Council of Museums.

From Aesthetes in Africa to the cultural history of the teapot, the essays in this collection contribute to scholarly debates across a wide range of disciplines. Addressing the question of whether "eclectic" relationships in Victorian decorative arts are actually self-conscious iconographic schemes or merely random juxtapositions of assorted objects, Rethinking the Interior, c. 1867-1896: Aestheticism and Arts and Crafts, argues that no firm demarcation exists between the two movements examined here. In the process, the contributors explore a wide variety of interiors in locations as diverse as London, Cornwall, New England, and Tangiers. Analyzing spaces public and private, sacred and secular, the volume poses several historiographic challenges. Drawing on a wide range of feminist and queer theories, the book questions the identification of nineteenth-century interiors as exclusively female or family spaces. The collection also addresses the complex and temporary character of interiors, and responds to the recent scholarly trend to return questions of feeling and embodied experience to the study of the decorative arts.

Challenging distinctions between fine and decorative art, this book begins with a critique of the Rodin scholarship, to establish how the selective study of his oeuvre has limited our understanding of French nineteenth-century sculpture. The book's central argument is that we need to include the decorative in the study of sculpture, in order to present a more accurate and comprehensive account of the practice and profession of sculpture in this period. Drawing on new archival sources, sculptors and objects, this is the first sustained study of how and why French sculptors collaborated with state and private luxury goods manufacturers between 1848 and 1895. Organised chronologically, the book identifies three historically-situated frameworks, through which sculptors attempted to validate themselves and their work in relation to industry: industrial art, decorative art and objet d'art. Detailed readings are offered of sculptors who operated within and outside the Salon, including S?n, Ch?t, Carrier-Belleuse and Rodin; and of diverse objects and materials, from S?es vases, to pewter plates by Desbois, and furniture by Barbedienne and Carabin. By contesting the false separation of art from industry, Claire Jones's study restores the importance of the sculptor-manufacturer relationship, and of the decorative, to the history of sculpture.

Publisher Description

This student-friendly text provides a comprehensive exploration of the methods and approaches employed within design scholarship, drawing upon influences from history, art history, anthropology and interdisciplinary studies such as science and technology studies and material culture studies. Drawing connections between these methods and the evolving landscape of design, the book expands design culture beyond traditional outcomes to encompass areas like design for social innovation, digital design, critical design, design anthropology and craftivism. Additionally, the book introduces novel theoretical frameworks to facilitate discussions on contemporary designers’ work, including new materialism, object-oriented ontology and decolonization. This comprehensive overview of methods and approaches will enable students to select the most appropriate methodological tools for their own research. It is an ideal guide for both undergraduate and postgraduate students in design, design culture, design history, design studies and visual culture.

“Expertly curated and styled rooms . . . The fifteen standout projects featured . . . are a testament to Nahem’s longstanding excellence and ingenuity.” —Vanity Fair Foreword by Robert Downey Jr. Over thirty years, Joe Nahem of Fox-Nahem has built a reputation for creating classic, contemporary, bespoke, and highly creative interior designs. The first book on his career, Fox-Nahem presents his most luxurious, exuberant, and refined interiors that showcase his own personal vision of modernism. Featuring fifteen projects, the accompanying essays detail Nahem’s design process, specifically his ability to function as much as a curator as designer, bringing together strong objects of quality and rarity in harmonious ensembles. Nahem’s interiors are unique because he designs many of the finishes, textiles, and furnishings that establish the look and feel of a room. He calls on a stable of artisans and craftspeople, including woodworkers, metal workers, and weavers, who assist him in creating one-of-a-kind environments for clients who demand something that no one else has. With more than 250 photographs, Fox-Nahem celebrates the work of a designer who seamlessly adapts his style to suit the context and fit his clients’ highly refined and original tastes.