An embarrassment of riches : rekindling desire for obsolete furniture : a exegesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Design, Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
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Date
2010
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Massey University
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Abstract
This exegesis tells the story of my Master of Design project, Embarrassment of Riches. During
this project I have gleaned obsolete furniture pieces and operated on them to present new
possibilities. This text discusses the body of work I have created in the context of three main
ideas: the use of gleaning, intervention and the role played by memory in rekindling desire.
I have focussed on making in a heuristic, research-through-design practice, testing ideas through
making/reflecting and then developing my ideas further in new pieces. Combining this actionresearch
method with bricolage has enabled me to critically self-reflect on my practice. Through
this I have discovered that I can continue to design and create objects in an age of overproduction
and consumption. With ecological considerations in mind I can make obsolete objects desirable
(again) by encouraging people to feel intimate with them. I intervene in the objects’ interstices
to suggest histories that kindle engagement and attachment. The interstice has been a rich
source of inspiration, not only as site of intervention, but as site where experimentation occurs,
a process by which objects are found and a space where new genres develop.
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Keywords
Recycled furniture, Design