© 2004 by Design History Society
Between Invention and Production
The Role of Design in the Manufacture of Wallpaper in France and England at the Turn of the Nineteenth Century
Institut d'histoire moderne et contemporaine (IHMC), Paris
Against a background of the various definitions of drawing and design offered in the Encyclopédie ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers (1754), the author argues that ‘design’, as applied to the manufacture of wallpapers at the end of the eighteenth century, is not so much a thing, either representation or pattern, as a means of communication between parties. The direct and indirect pressure exerted by the market is examined, and the role of the entrepreneur is considered, as is the importance of the ready availability of design information across manufactured goods and competitive emulation between them. Finally, and with particular reference to arabesque wallpapers, the specific role of the designer is considered. The structure of the paper reverses traditional expectations and priorities, which have generally focused on the designer rather than on clients or manufacturers.
Key Words: Consumer—design—drawing—eighteenth century—manufacture—pattern—wallpapers