Alexandra
Deschamps-Sonsino
Kitchens & Invaders By
Germano Celant, ed. (2016)
I have been working on the
future of the home with
the Good Home Project
( thegoodhome.org) and am
fascinated by the impact of
the 1950s on the collective
imagination. The home
became a battleground for
such aggressive marketing
of new technologies that its
repercussions can be seen
now in Internet-connected
consumer experiences for
the home. This exhibition
catalog is a further, Italian-specific exploration of the
kitchen and the commercial
and technological landscape
that emerged post World
War II. There is a lot to
digest, from architectural
explorations to utensil
designs and space layouts.
I tend to read books in
parallel at a varying pace.
I probably have two other
fiction books on the go to add
to this list but these seemed
more relevant to a design
audience.
Skyfaring: A Journey with
a Pilot By Mark Vanhoenacker
(2015) I have been on 39
flights since January (as of
this writing). When I heard
about this book on BBC
Radio 4, it was bound to
attract my attention. The
experience and observations
of the author, a commercial
airline pilot, helps me find
great beauty in what can be
seen as either the world’s
greatest waste of natural
resources or one of the most
tedious aspects of global
work practices.
period in art. I grew up
in Paris, so I have always
been interested in the art
communities that haunted its
cafés and streets. I wondered
how these artists met and
shared ideas through obscure
print publications, letters,
and visits. It turns out Prague
had its own community of
poets, writers, painters, and
soon to be modern architects
in between the world wars.
They met and interacted
with the Parisian scene in
interesting ways; a recent
trip to Prague has helped me
contextualize and give flavor
to the writing.
Prague, Capital of
the Twentieth Century:
A Surrealist History
By Derek Sayer (2015)
Surrealism is my favorite
Specs
Focus: The Internet
of Things
Base: designswarm/
Good Night Lamp,
London, U.K.
WHAT
ARE YOU
READING?
