Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Plastic is the material of our time, "the first magical substance", said Roland Barthes, "that consents to be prosaic". Plastic objects, as this extraordinary collection so abudantly demonstrates, make modern life richer, more comfortable, more stylish, and more fun. The ancient Greeks gave us the world "plastikos" - moldable - and there are many examples of natural plastics, from amber to shellac, which can be softened and shaped. In 1839, Charles Goodyear discovered the first semi-synthetic plastic, which survives, under the names of hard rubber, ebonite, and vulcanite, in nineteenth-century fountain pens and matchboxes, jewelry, and candlestick telephones. Since then, plastics of many kinds have given us a wonderfully enticing range of design possibilities : Victorian Parkesine inlaid bracelets, celluloid boxes with delicate tortoiseshell effects made from secret formulas, Bakelite radio cabinets, Art Deco marbled cigarette cases and brooches, classic postwar designs for chairs and household gadgets - and now, in the 1980s, not only the laminated furniture of Italy's Memphis group, drawing on the past to develop new ideas, but the creative use of plastics to replace metals in every corner of our homes. Many collectors have already discovered that fine pieces, combining visual and historical interest, can still be found at low cost. In a comprehensive information section, author Sylvia Katz provides everything the plastics collector needs to know : what to look out for, and where ; how to identify pieces by examination, simple tests, or with the help of a specialist ; cleaning and storing, journal magazines, and other publications of interest ; collections of vintage plastics ; trade names ; and a detailed glossary.

Chemistry --- Housekeeping --- Plastics --- Architecture --- History --- design [discipline] --- history [discipline] --- plastic [material] --- Plastics craft --- Decoration and ornament