bookshelf tuesday

Samantha over at Whizzme came up with the lovely BOOKSHELF TUESDAY last week, so I thought I'd join in.
Thanks Samantha!

Today I'd like to share with you lovely people Eva Zeilsel on Design. As many of you know Eva Zeisel has been an  uber influential designer/ceramist for almost a century and continues to design out of her apartment in NYC....*heart*

I like to imagine that if Eva had a blog, this book is what it would be like.
It's filled with pages of imagery that represents what design is to her.

She speaks of how we see things and our search for beauty, the balance between function and the aesthetic.

I think the introduction in her book sums up so much of why we create things:

"This picture book is meant to teach a language that will speak to those for whom we - designers - make things. This language is not meant for monologues, nor for self expression, but to speak to others...When you begin your work, nothing exists. When it is finished it looks as if it just happened, spontaneously, effortlessly, convincingly. It looks as though it had been there all along. To create things to be used, to be loved, to be with, to give as a gift, to fit into a normal day, to match a festive mood, to be proud of, is to create the culture of life that surrounds us. This is a personal activity, a thoughtful activity of imagining and visualising and making critical decisions. Neither the "juggling" of basic forms, nor fortuitous artistic accidents, nor the insertion of a computer as intermediary can replace the personal dialogue between maker and thing, which leads to a design that communicates to others"

She also talks about the difference between Variety and Originality, a concept I struggle with.

"Variety is that element of beauty that atttracts attention.' according to Roger Fry, English art critic and painter. Self expression, the search for novelty - also called "innovative design" - the demonstration of ones personality, the search for originality, trying to create something that's different, are all motivations which do not lead to variety. They are all negative impulses, urging you not to do something causing the designer to hold back, rather than to give. All negative attitudes inhibit the process of creation; they stop the joy of aesthetic play...Only a positive attitude of generosity, a friendly dialogue with our work from the beginning to the end of its development, will produce pleasant variety."

some beautiful examples of Eva's work.

A prototype for a modular ceramic wall divider.

I find it interesting that functional art like pottery is often referred to as Decorative, when clearly a painting on a wall is far more decorative than functional.

Comments

[Kathleen]

That looks like an amazing book...I think I may need to get a copy right now. Really lovely post. Thanks for sharing!

[maditi]

beautiful post - I so admire her work!! thanx!!!

[missellz]

I love to read about women and art. Recently I studied works by Liubov Popova and used one of her paintings for inspiration on a landscape design student project. I can't wait til' I read about Ms. Eva Zeisel. Just by looking at your blog, i'm already drawn to her works.

[vegasandvenice]

Ooh even your book shelf is beautifully organized!

[samantha]

what a lovely book - and inspiring designer. I'll have to look her up too. Thanks for joining me.

[Marieke]

That is a great post, Carolyn! And actually a very good idea... It's really true how she says something you finished is like it existed all along, that it is suddenly there. I think that makes a good design - that it speaks for itself. But it also makes you doubt sometimes why it took so long to make... But I think that is a good thing.

I had not heard of her but will check the library...