Word: patina
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Patina and Design...
...your article on the modern design show in Philadelphia [Oct. 24]: Americans do not reject the "form" of modern design. It is the materials that they resist. People want objects that reflect warmth, texture and the patina that develops with use. These qualities are found in wood, not chrome, glass and polyvinyl. As a cabinetmaker, I believe that it is not ornament that is demanded, but natural materials and some evidence that a human hand has touched the piece...
...does not take quite that much marination to make a great snob, since the secret of snobbery is mere plausibility, the appearance of knowledge and breeding. Still, in a busy world it is difficult to find the time and resources to give the laminations and high gloss, the old patina, that used to be the mark of great snobbery...
Sabi suggests patina or decomposition: the retreat of bright new substance into a world of obscurity and hints. It is what a cypress doorframe acquires after three centuries of sliding the shoji back and forth. It is what Japanese collectors got when they left their silverware to tarnish, instead of polishing it to a bright Tiffany glitter. Wabi is an older and wider concept. It conveys not the dryness and stillness of sabi, but an aristocratic use of "poor," rustic materials. Tea is the origin of much of Japanese design since the 15th century; in fact, the nearest thing...
...weathering. The owner of the villa was so proud to have her house on TV, however, that before the production crew arrived she had it painted a bright, Day-Glo yellow. The first day of filming was upset while the art department hastily tried to restore the centuries-old patina...