Design and Spirituality: A Philosophy of Material Cultures

ISBN-13: 9780367619978 / Angielski / Miękka / 2020 / 314 str.

UK) Stuart Walker (Lancaster University

Opis

Design and Spirituality examines the philosophical context of our current situation and its implications for design. It explores how modernity and our constricted notions of progress have contributed to today's crisis of values, and argues for a re-establishment and re-affirmation of self-transcending priorities, together with an ethos of moderation and sufficiency. A wide range of topics are covered, including material culture and spiritual teachings; sustainability and the spiritual perspective; traditional and indigenous knowledge; technology and spirituality; notions of meaningful design; and how particular material things can have deeper, symbolic significance. There are also reflections on areas such as the language of design; busyness and its relationship to wisdom; design and social disparity; and traditional sacred practices. While not avoiding issues that are controversial, and sometimes hard-hitting, Design and Spirituality gets to the heart of the key issues affecting us today and presents them in a highly readable and accessible format. The author is a leading thinker in the field and he presents his arguments in a manner that invites the reader to reflect and think about where we are going, why we are going there and what really matters.

Spis treści

Foreword  1. Introduction  2. The Nature of Design  3. Material Things and Spiritual Teachings  4. Sustainability and Secular Liberalism  5. Busyness and Wisdom  6. Heartless  7. When the Devil Drives  8. Nipping the Bloom  9. The Serpentine Walk  10. Language Speaks  11. A Complacency of Strangers  12. Insecticides and Suicides  13. Transcending Technology  14. Jericho Road  15. Design and Spirituality  16. Lucratively Loveless  17. Unity, Love and Design  18. Shallowness and Depth  19. An Impression of Intentionality  20. Failings  21. The Inner Flame  22. Religion and Atheism  23. Techno-spirituality  24. A Higher Purpose  25. Material Things and Spiritual Goods  26. Meaningful Design  27. The Deeper Significance of Things  28. At the Valley  29. Traditional Knowledge  30. The Dobby Stone  31. Natural Magic  32. Ex Voto  33. The Well of Fajã dos Padres  34. Sacred Smoke  35. Under the Volcano  36. An Expression of the Sacred  37. The Mexelhote and the Molinillo  38. An Object of my Affection  39. Memento Mori  40. Bread of Life  41. The Conference of the Blind  42. Something and Nothing  43. The Faraway Bird  44. Aesthetic Roots  45. Wabi Sabi  46. A Beachfront View  47. Local  48. Provenance, Presence and Posterity  49. Tradition  50. Nootka Sound  51. Along the Highway  52. Clear cut  53. A Northern Town  54. Vanity Fair  55. What is Truth?  56. The Spiritual Sensibility  57. A Suitable Metaphor  58. Higher Goods  59. Making Special  60. Truth, Goodness and Beauty  61. Creating from the Heart  62. Sine Fide  63. The Third Exit  64. Restart or Reform?  Endnotes  Bibliography  Index

O autorze

Stuart Walker is Chair of Design for Sustainability at Lancaster University where he co-founded the ImaginationLancaster Design Research Lab. He is also Visiting Professor of Sustainable Design at Kingston University and Emeritus Professor at the University of Calgary. His research focuses on environmental, social and spiritual aspects of sustainability; it has been supported by the SSHRC in Canada and the AHRC and the Arts Council in the UK. His experimental designs have been exhibited in Canada, Australia, Italy and the UK. His books include Sustainable by Design; Design Roots (lead ed.); Design for Life; and Design Realities.