Anne Massey

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Women in Design

A history of women designers and consumers from 1900 to the present day.

The work of women designers has not traditionally been the focus of mainstream histories of design. By revealing the untold story of female design pioneers, this comprehensive introduction celebrates their crucial role in the history of modern processes of making.

Arranged chronologically, this guide considers the structural barriers to professional success and how women overcame these hurdles, charting the success of designers including Anni Albers at the Bauhaus, the architect Eileen Grey, interior decorator Elsie de Wolfe and fashion icon Mary Quant, focusing on the key subjects of architecture, craft, fashion, furniture, graphics, interior, product and textile design. The link between early twentieth-century revolutionary design and lifestyle is explored, as well the ideas of shopping and consumerism as a liberating activity. The important contribution of designers during and after the Second World War is also discussed, along with design activism, design collectives and the current success of women working transnationally in architecture and design.