Date of Award

Spring 2019

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Major

Art History

First Advisor

Alden Gordon

Abstract

The curiosity of everyday objects looms large in every human’s life. And naturally, these objects are almost as diverse in character as the person who bought them. This variation can be in style, period, shape, origin but also in the arrangement it is given in relation to other objects or persons in a space. On one level, the objects we surround ourselves with are meaningless, purely functional, utilitarian and banal. Especially on a budget, one may not consider aesthetic or design issues at all and purely buy a toaster because they want toast. Why would one buy a SMEG+Dolce and Gabbana toaster when they could just get one from Home Depot that works exactly the same? How does a chair that costs $3.7 million stack up next to a $30 Ivar IKEA chair? Such is the daunting, age old question that collectors, designers, journalists, connoisseurs and gallerists alike have been discussing in cycles for decades. The 1851 Great Exhibition broke down the assumption that goods did not need to be starkly divided into everyday objects and fine art and since then, through our progressive obsession with Japanese and Danish ideals, the West has steady moved towards a sense of artificial simplicity. Through my thesis, I plan to further address this by analyzing new trends in furniture and object design in terms of fashionability, historical references and prejudices attached to the medium of craft. In sum, by analyzing this contemporary canon of design as an art historian, ultimately a new dialogue will emerge on everyday objects and their agency.

Comments

Senior thesis completed at Trinity College, Hartford, CT for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Art History.

Additional Files
Thesis Cover Page.pdf (62 kB)
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