Mienke Simon Thomas is a curator in the department of decorative arts and design in Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, and the author of Dutch Ceramics 1890-1940 (2002).
Mienke Simon Thomas engrossing account in this book implies the
current lack of design focus reflects a wider malaise a sense of
drift from a clear purpose. Her survey and insights give much for
thought about that doughty small country across the sea with which
we British have such a particular affinity.
*Architects Journal*
Historical and critical account of the last 100 years, explaining
why this small country is at the forefront of European architecture
and product design. Thomas puts this in the context of a country
whose wealth was based on trade. A well illustrated and referenced
text.
*RIBA Journal*
A hotbed of experimentation, Holland has long been at the forefront
of contemporary interior design, from the curious Rietveld chair to
the quirky milk bottle lamp by Droog. Recounting the stories behind
many of these fascinating pieces, author and museum curator Mienke
Simon Thomas reveals all in her most recent must-read. An
enlightening guide (and great gift too!) for designers and
historians interested in the Netherlands myriad of intriguing
products.
*Essential Kitchen Bathroom Bedroom Magazine*
Mienke Simon Thomas has written a serious and highly involving
survey of design in the Netherlands in the twentieth century.
Rather than lauding particular achievements of Dutch designers, she
has chosen to situate such practice in its social and broader
cultural context. She examines the practices of designers and
design organizations, taking care to emphasize the importance of
the various design academies and the relationship between design
and manufacture and, perhaps crucially, the role of the Dutch state
in supporting such work through subsidies and commissions.
*Journal of Design History*
This is what weve been waiting for: finally, an unprecedented
critical analysis of the history of Dutch design. Mienke Simon
Thomass Dutch Design is a book to have and to read: an important
and richly detailed study of the cultural, economical and
social-political context of twentieth-century design in the
Netherlands.
*Wim Crouwel, designer*
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