Description

Book Synopsis
From Leatherette to Naugahyde, men and women have devoted enormous energy to making fake leather seem real. Faux Real explores this borderland of the almost-real, the ersatz, and the fake, illuminating a centuries-old culture war between the authentic and the imitative.

Trade Review
"A sound researcher and an engaging writer. . . . Kanigel intelligently takes time to address the philosophical question of the importance of faux versus real." * Publishers Weekly *
"Fantastic cultural history. Smart and sensual prose. You'll never look at your Manolos the same way again." * Sylvia Nasar, author of A Beautiful Mind: The Life of Mathematical Genius and Nobel Laureate John Nash *
"Kanigel's book is an easy and pleasurable read. . . . A tribute to leather's physical and tactile properties and to humankind's ingenuity and persistence in attempting to imitate them." * Design and Culture *

Faux Real

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    A Paperback by Robert Kanigel

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      Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press
      Publication Date: Publication Date: 9/14/2010 12:00:00 AM
      ISBN13: 9780812221329, 978-0812221329
      ISBN10: 081222132X
      Also in:
      Cultural studies

      Description

      Book Synopsis
      From Leatherette to Naugahyde, men and women have devoted enormous energy to making fake leather seem real. Faux Real explores this borderland of the almost-real, the ersatz, and the fake, illuminating a centuries-old culture war between the authentic and the imitative.

      Trade Review
      "A sound researcher and an engaging writer. . . . Kanigel intelligently takes time to address the philosophical question of the importance of faux versus real." * Publishers Weekly *
      "Fantastic cultural history. Smart and sensual prose. You'll never look at your Manolos the same way again." * Sylvia Nasar, author of A Beautiful Mind: The Life of Mathematical Genius and Nobel Laureate John Nash *
      "Kanigel's book is an easy and pleasurable read. . . . A tribute to leather's physical and tactile properties and to humankind's ingenuity and persistence in attempting to imitate them." * Design and Culture *

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