Wiley-Blackwell Material Identities (New Interventions in Art History)

Material Identities examines the way that individuals use material objects as tools for projecting aspects of their identities. Considers the way identity is fashioned, launched, used, and admired in the material world. Contributors intervene from the disciplines of art history, anthropology, design and material culture. Considers contrasting media - painting, print, sculpture, dress, coinage, architecture, furniture, luxury items, and interior design. Explores the complexity of identity through the intersection notions of gender, ethnicity, age, sexuality, and class. Reaffirms the central role of public identities and their impact on social life. From the Inside Flap Material Identities examines the way that individuals use material objects as tools for conveying certain aspects of their personalities to others. Exploring the complexity of identity through the intersecting notions of gender, ethnicity, age, sexuality, and class, this book looks at the deliberate expression and manipulation of identity through the use of material goods, and how individuals single out aspects of themselves in order to project or conceal particular characteristics. Engaging with objects from the past and present, high and low culture, and from around the globe, this volume explores the range of contrasting media from painting and print to clothing and furniture, and takes the reader on a whirlwind tour of material culture’s expression, and identity’s careful orchestration. Contributors include experts from various fields including architectural theory and museum studies. From the Back Cover Material Identities examines the way that individuals use material objects as tools for conveying certain aspects of their personalities to others. Exploring the complexity of identity through the intersecting notions of gender, ethnicity, age, sexuality, and class, this book looks at the deliberate expression and manipulation of identity through the use of material goods, and how individuals single out aspects of themselves in order to project or conceal particular characteristics. Engaging with objects from the past and present, high and low culture, and from around the globe, this volume explores the range of contrasting media from painting and print to clothing and furniture, and takes the reader on a whirlwind tour of material culture’s expression, and identity’s careful orchestration. Contributors include experts from various fields including architectural theory and museum studies. About the Author Joanna Sofaer is a Senior Lecturer in Archaeology at the University of Southampton. She is the author of The Body as Material Culture: A Theoretical Osteoarchaeology (2006), editor of Children and Material Culture (2000) and co-editor, with Dana Arnold, of Biographies and Space (2007).