{"title":"Ian Malcolm Taplin","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIan Malcolm Taplin\u003c\/strong\u003e offers insightful works that explore the evolving concept of luxury through historical and cultural lenses. His books provoke thought on how luxury shapes our societies and personal identities, inviting readers to consider its broader implications beyond mere opulence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRooted in the \u003cem\u003eEducation \u0026amp; Reference\u003c\/em\u003e category, Taplin’s writing serves as a valuable resource for those interested in design, history, and social trends. These reflective narratives provide a rich understanding of luxury's role in human development and contemporary culture.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"the-evolution-of-luxury-by-ian-malcolm-taplin-9780815386513","title":"The Evolution of Luxury","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis book offers a unique analysis of how our definitions of luxury have changed over the ages, and with that, the role and actions of both suppliers and buyers of luxury products. It traces the way luxury was seen as avarice and emblematic of morally corrosive behaviour in past societies, to being viewed in more virtuous terms as the inevitable outcome of structural changes that legitimise the acquisition and display of wealth. It examines the origins of the shift from criticism to acceptance, and traces these changes to fundamentally different notions of what constitutes the basis for social order.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhereas pre-industrial hierarchies cloaked inequality in various secular and sacred guises to mitigate its presence, capitalism justified and reified inequality as a measure of individual success and initiative through interdependent market behaviour. The result of this transformation is that status markers have become aspirational tools as hierarchies became porous and self-identity less ascriptive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCorrespondingly, as demand for luxury became legitimised, the supply side underwent dramatic changes. Such changes are explored fully in the sectors of fashion, art, and wine. As demand for high-priced and scarce goods in each of these sectors has increased, in each case, key actors have manipulated markets to purposefully either consolidate their pre-eminence or manufacture the requisite scarcity that affords them canonical status.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe demand for and supply of luxury goods is now global; consumers seeking validation and affirmation of their status, whilst producers engineer scarcity. Luxury is seen not only as good; it is virtuous, its demand possibly insatiable and extremely profitable.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Evolution of Luxury\u003c\/em\u003e by Ian Malcolm Taplin provides a thorough examination of these phenomena, making it an essential read for anyone interested in understanding the shifting dynamics of luxury in the modern world.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Taylor \u0026 Francis","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47607940841708,"sku":"9780815386513","price":341.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780815386513-the-evolution-of-luxury.jpg?v=1778180753"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/collections\/ian-malcolm-taplin.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}