Blow-Up

Inflatable Art, Architecture, and Design

Inflatable forms have been around for centuries, but scientists, architects, artists, and manufacturers keep rediscovering this deceptively simple technology. Some of its first applications were extreme environments, where it appealed to scientists and the military. But in the 1960s artists such as Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg, and design collectives such as Utopia and Archigram, used pneumatic forms to challenge conventional assumptions about the role of materials in art and architecture.

Contemporary designers

Contemporary designers such as Verner Panton and Issey Miyake have incorporated blow-ups into their work, and today inflatables have entered the mainstream market in such diverse structures as toys, furniture, and walk-through environments.

Technological and philosophical history

This unique work brings the technological and philosophical history of pneumatics into the present, beautifully illustrating its countless uses as it reveals how inflatable objects still evoke the sense of optimism and escape that inspired the first designers in this field.

Sean Topham

Sean Topham studied design and currently works as a writer and journalist. His interest in plastics began while writing a documentary on Action Man. He lives in London, England.
Publisher: Prestel USA
ISBN: 3791326872