Fewer, better things : the hidden wisdom of objects /

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Bibliographic Details
Author / Creator:Adamson, Glenn, author.
Imprint:New York, NY : Bloomsbury Publishing, Bloomsbury Publishing, Inc., 2018.
©2018
Description:vi, 257 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm
Language:English
Subject:Personal belongings -- Psychological aspects.
Manufactures -- Psychological aspects.
Material culture -- Philosophy.
Object (Philosophy)
Values.
Handicraft.
Handicraft -- Philosophy.
Industrial design.
Object (Philosophy)
Workmanship.
History.
Format: Print Book
URL for this record:http://pi.lib.uchicago.edu/1001/cat/bib/11709543
Hidden Bibliographic Details
ISBN:9781632869647
1632869640
9781632869661
Notes:Includes bibliographical references and index.
Summary:"Fewer, Better Things explores the history of craft in its many forms, explaining how raw materials, tools, design, and technique come together to produce beauty and utility in handmade or manufactured items. Whether describing the implements used in a traditional Japanese tea ceremony, the use of woodworking tools, or the use of new fabrication technologies, Adamson writes expertly and lovingly about the aesthetics of objects, and the care and attention that goes into producing them. Reading this wise and elegant book is a truly transformative experience."--
Table of Contents:
  • Introduction: Engaging with the Objects Around Us
  • 1. Life on Pumpkin Creek
  • 2. A Few Words on Craft
  • 3. The Paper Challenge
  • 4. Being "Hands On"
  • 5. Tricks of the Trade
  • 6. Tooling Up
  • 7. Learning by Doing
  • 8. Prototyping
  • 9. One Thing for Another
  • 10. Face to Face
  • 11. Communities of Respect
  • 12. Finding Our Way
  • 13. The Contact Zone
  • 14. The Paradise of Touch
  • 15. The View from the Hardware Store
  • 16. Time to Pay Attention
  • 17. The Myth of the Dumb Object
  • 18. Going Deep
  • 19. The Way of Tea
  • 20. All That Is Left
  • 21. Small Worlds
  • 22. Fewer, Better Things
  • 23. To Have and to Hold
  • 24. Thinking Things Through
  • 25. Material Science
  • 26. Handle ... with Care
  • 27. Anchor Points
  • 28. The View from Tucumcari
  • 29. Thinking Inside the Box
  • 30. Material Histories
  • 31. The Itinerary of Plastic
  • 32. A Book of Secrets
  • 33. Facts, Not Opinions
  • 34. Two Castes, One People?
  • Epilogue: The Virtues of Things
  • Acknowledgments
  • Notes
  • Index