{"product_id":"9780816647538-commodification-and-spectacle-in-architecture-a-harvard-design-magazine-reader","title":"Commodification and Spectacle in Architecture","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA Harvard Design Magazine Reader\u003cbr\u003ePresents diverse points of view on the relationship between design and capitalism. The contributions to this book stake out a variety of positions in the debate over the extent to which it is possible - or desirable - to escape from, resist, or suggest plausible alternatives to the dominant culture of consumer capitalism.\u003cbr\u003eMore than ever, architectural design is seen as a means to promote commercial goals rather than as an end in itself. Frank Gehry's Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, for example, simply cannot be considered apart from its intended role as a catalyst for the economic revitalization of Bilbao and its ability to attract tourist dollars, regardless of its architectural merits. A built environment intended to seduce consumers is more likely to offer instant gratification than to invite independent thought and reflection. But how harmful, if at all, is this unprecedented commercialization of architecture? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFramed with a provocative introduction by Kenneth Frampton, the contributions to \u003ci\u003eCommodification and Spectacle in Architecture\u003c\/i\u003e stake out a variety of positions in the debate over the extent to which it is possible—or desirable—to escape from, resist, or suggest plausible alternatives to the dominant culture of consumer capitalism. Rejecting any dreamy nostalgia for an idealized present or past in which design is completely divorced from commerce—and, in some cases, celebrating the pleasures of spectacle—the individual essays range from indictments of particular architects and critiques of the profession to broader concerns about what the phenomenon of commodification means for the practice of democracy and the health of society. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBringing together an impressive and varied group of critics and practitioners, \u003ci\u003eCommodification and Spectacle in Architecture\u003c\/i\u003e will help to sharpen the discussion of how design can respond to our hypercommodified culture. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eContributors: Michael Benedikt, Luis Fernández-Galiano, Thomas Frank, Kevin Ervin Kelley, Daniel Naegele, Rick Poynor, Michael Sorkin, Wouter Vanstiphout. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWilliam S. Saunders is editor of \u003ci\u003eHarvard Design Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e and assistant dean for external relations at the Harvard Design School. He is the author of \u003ci\u003eModern Architecture: Photographs by Ezra Stoller\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eKenneth Frampton is Ware Professor of Architecture at Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation and author of many books, including \u003ci\u003eLabour, Work, and Architecture\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55421450813814,"sku":"9780816647538","price":18.34,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/orig_33667591.jpg?v=1748575655","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9780816647538-commodification-and-spectacle-in-architecture-a-harvard-design-magazine-reader","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}