From the Publisher
This incredibly researched, brilliant book merges the critical theory on twentieth-century design with a discussion of the designers' and architects' works that were influenced by this writing. It could be titled “Emancipation Proclamation” (after Abraham Lincoln's greatest achievement).
Dan GrahamSpoon to city, lipstick to locomotive, atom to complex system, Alexandra Midal's theory encompasses all scales. Bold and assertive, it claims a territory (both academic and disciplinary) that design has invaded over decades. Respectful, curious, generous, and hungry for other fields' bodies of knowledge and expertise, designers invade without colonizing. Who can we trust more?
Paola Antonelli, Museum of Modern Art
Design by Accident is a genealogical odyssey that masterfullyand critically, and lovinglyinterweaves stories and ideas to chart the emergence of design as an autonomous discipline. This is no mean feat. As the author asserts, it is a “history of design in its own terms.” One for our own times too.
Michelle Millar Fisher, Philadelphia Museum of Art