Plastic Dreams: Synthetic Visions in Design

Over the past 150 years, the role of plastics within the field of design has been fundamental to the development of the manmade environment. Synthetic polymers have quite literally molded the modern world, transforming utopian dreams into three-dimensional realities. Indeed, the impact of plastics has been felt in every area of human life, from healthcare and food distribution to communications, transportation and financial transactions. Plastic Dreams: Synthetic Visions in Design tells the fascinating story of these truly wondrous materials, charting their evolution from the mid-nineteenth century to the present, across a huge range of landmark product types, from Wells Coates' iconic AD 65 radio to Konstantin Grcic's MYTO stacking chair, and from Bakelite in the 1920s to today's latest techno-polymers. A fully illustrated reference resource, this volume raises our aesthetic perception of plastics and celebrates their nobility as materials. An introductory essay traces the fascinating history of plastics and assesses their decisive role in industrial design, while an extensive glossary of materials and processes will help the plastics neophyte distinguish their Jaxonite and Xylonite from their polyethylene and ABS. As a final design flourish, Plastic Dreams comes with a specially designed orange plastic slipcase by Edson Matsuo of Melissa.