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The Invention of Craft

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( 34 ratings, 2 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
In The Invention of Craft, Glenn Adamson explores the origins and evolution of modern craft, tracing its emergence during the industrial revolution as a counterpart to industrial progress. The book examines how craft transformed from a secretive artisan culture into an oppositional, anti-modern practice through division and explanation. Adamson's wide-ranging study covers diverse media, including lock-making, wood-carving, iron-casting, fashion, architecture, and design, spanning the 18th century to today. The work reveals how contemporary craft can be better understood by studying its historical invention.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This insightful book is ideal for readers interested in arts, culture, design, and history, especially those keen to understand the relationship between craft, industry, and modernity. It appeals to craft practitioners, scholars, and anyone fascinated by the evolution of skilled work across disciplines and time.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Glenn Adamson's last book, Thinking Through Craft, offered an influential account of craft's position within modern and contemporary art. Now, in his engaging sequel, The Invention of Craft, his theoretical discussion of skilled work is extended back in time and across numerous disciplines.

Adamson searches out the origins of modern craft, locating its emergence in the period of the industrial revolution. He demonstrates how craft was invented as industry's "other", a necessary counterpart to ideas of progress and upheaval. In the process, the magical and secretive culture of artisans was gradually dominated through division and explication. This left craft with an oppositional stance, a traditional or anti-modern position.

The Invention of Craft ranges widely across media, from lock-making, wood-carving and iron-casting to fashion, architecture and design. It also moves back and forth between periods, from the 18th century to the present day, demonstrating how contemporary practice can be informed through the study of modern craft in its moment of invention.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Invention of Craft has been praised as an engaging and provocative book, featured in the Financial Times' 'books of the year'. Critics have noted Adamson's compelling argument that craft is deeply rooted in modernity and adaptive to contemporary technology. Craft Magazine highlights its potential to transform perceptions of craft permanently, while other reviewers commend its wide scope, intellectual depth, and ability to convince skeptics of craft's vitality and relevance.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781350088092

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 01 September 2018

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Bloomsbury Visual Arts

Illustration: 70 bw & 16 colour illus

Audience: Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 18.0mm

Width: 168.0mm

Height: 244.0mm

Weight: 760g

Pages: 272

About the Author

Glenn Adamson is Head of Graduate Studies and Deputy Head of Research at the Victoria & Albert Museum. He is also author of The Craft Reader (Berg, 2009) and Thinking Through Craft (Berg, 2007).

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