Description

pp. 327, includes an index, chronology, and book list. Black and white photographs throughout. “This is the story of how the British, against all odds, became design-conscious; the ironic admirable and fascinating history of British design from the Crystal Palace onwards. It begins with the 1830s, when people first began to realize that British standards were abysmal, and takes us up to the present day, with our government-supported Council of Industrial Design, our design-school system which is the envy of the rest of Europe, and the high level of design appreciation among the general public. It is the story of a succession of stubborn little groups of people with a vision of a more beautiful Britian: from Sir Henry Cole, the Victorian propagandist, supported by Prince Albert and an influential clique, to William Morris and the Arts and Crafts societies, on to the foundation of the Design and Industries and the Council of Industrial Design (at the close of the Second). Large sections of the book are devoted to product design – lights, cookers, food-mixers, clocks – and another big section goes to capital goods – tools and instruments, office equipment, street furniture, and transport. With its 300 superb illustrations ‘All Things Bright and Beautiful’ is written for shoppers and shopkeepers, for students, designers and manufacturers, in fact, for anyone concerned with this environment of ours, its traditions, its post-war development, its future.”