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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement
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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement Hardback - 1996 - 1st Edition

by Barry Sanders

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Reader reviews for A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

From the publisher

"It's a complex fate, being an American." -- Henry James

A Complex Fate offers the first full-length look at Gustav Stickley, who rose from unknown cabinetmaker to the most vocal spokesman in America for the early twentieth-century aesthetic revolution that became known as the Craftsman Movement. In the face of the Modern Age, Stickley espoused the values of the medieval craftsman, influencing the design of furniture, pottery, metalwork, jewelry, bookbinding, leatherwork, and architecture. Author Barry Sanders chronicles the progress of Stickley's wide-ranging career, from his rise to fame and wealth to his ultimate financial ruin. Rare photographs and renderings of Stickley's designs enhance this compelling portrait of the man and his work.

It was a time of enormous upheaval in America. Sweeping and convulsive changes spilled into the new century in every conceivable shape: electric lights, overhead railways, airplanes, automobiles, the Ashcan school of painting, jazz, and Henry James. Yet, in the middle of this time of intense innovation, a movement dedicated to simple living began to take shape. It became known as the Craftsman Movement, and an unknown cabinetmaker, Gustav Stickley, became its most vocal spokesman, and in many ways, its embodiment.

A Complex Fate chronicles Stickley's life and career--a career marked by the same contradictions that characterized America's transition from a largely rural society to a modern, technological one. He regarded himself as a modern, yet espoused a philosophy that celebrated simplicity, community, and skilled manual work. His furniture itself, at first glance simple, stark, and hand-built, was nevertheless mass-produced and regarded as thoroughly modern by a public eager to buy it.

In this, the first full-length profile of Stickley, we follow his rise to staggering wealth, wide popularity, and enormous influence on the design of furniture, pottery, metalwork, jewelry, book-binding, leatherwork, and architecture. We see the power of his charisma and uncommon ego, his plans for rural crafts schools, and his messianic drive to spread the message of artisanship, community, and honest, unalienated labor. We watch, too, as his ambitions and contradictions finally become overwhelming, leaving him a bankrupt and broken man.

A Complex Fate is the robust portrait of a man whose talent, nerve, and savvy have left a lasting imprint on design in America, and whose life offers us a window on the roiling tumult of a society on the brink of a new age.

Details

  • Title A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement
  • Author Barry Sanders
  • Binding Hardback
  • Edition number 1st
  • Edition 1
  • Pages 216
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Wiley, New York
  • Publication date 1996-04
  • Illustrated Yes
  • ISBN 9780471143925 / 0471143928
  • Weight 1.35 lbs (0.61 kg)
  • Dimensions 10.26 x 7.28 x 0.65 in (26.06 x 18.49 x 1.65 cm)
  • Category Biography / Autobiography
  • Library of Congress subjects Stickley, Gustav - Criticism and, Arts and crafts movement - New York (State)
  • Library of Congress Catalogue Number 95046177
  • Dewey Decimal Code 749.213

About the author

BARRY SANDERS is Professor of English and the History of Ideas at Pitzer College in Claremont, California. He is most recently the author of Sudden Glory: Laughter as Subversive History and A Is for Ox: Violence, Electronic Media, and the Silencing of the Written Word.

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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement
Stock photo: cover may vary

A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Barry Sanders

  • Used
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  • Hardback
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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
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Wiley. 1996. F First Edition Used. H Hardcover. Very Good. Name to endpaper.
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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement
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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Sanders, Barry

  • Used
  • Very good
  • Hardback
Condition
Very good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780471143925 / 0471143928
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Wiley, 1996. Hardcover. Very Good. Missing dust jacket; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed.
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A Complex Fate : Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

A Complex Fate : Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Barry Sanders

  • Used
  • Good
  • Hardback
Condition
Good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780471143925 / 0471143928
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Wiley & Sons, Incorporated, John, 1996. Hardcover. Good. Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed.
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A$11.17
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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Sanders, Barry

  • Used
  • Very good
  • Hardback
Condition
Very good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780471143925 / 0471143928
Quantity available
1
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Item price
A$11.17
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Description:
Wiley, 1996. Hardcover. Very Good. Former library book; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed.
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Item price
A$11.17
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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Sanders, Barry

  • Used
  • Very good
  • Hardback
Condition
Very good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780471143925 / 0471143928
Quantity available
1
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Item price
A$11.17
Free Delivery to USA

Show details

Description:
Wiley, 1996. Hardcover. Very Good. May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed.
Add to wish list
Item price
A$11.17
Free Delivery to USA
A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement
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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Sanders, Barry

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780471143925 / 0471143928
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Preservation Pr, 1996. Hardcover. Like New. 7x0x10. A previously owned copy that is unblemished.; 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed! Ships same or next business day!
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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement
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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Sanders, Barry

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
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Wiley. Collectible - Very Good. First edition copy. Collectible - Very Good. Very Good dust jacket. In protective mylar cover.
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A Complex Fate : Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement
Stock photo: cover may vary

A Complex Fate : Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Sanders, Barry

  • Used
Condition
Used
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780471143925 / 0471143928
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Wiley & Sons, Incorporated, John. Used - Very Good. Pages intact with possible writing/highlighting. Binding strong with minor wear. Dust jackets/supplements may not be included. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good.
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A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement
Stock photo: cover may vary

A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Sanders, Barry

  • Used
  • Very good
  • Hardback
Condition
Very good
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780471143925 / 0471143928
Quantity available
1
Seller
Item price
A$18.07
A$8.74 Delivery to USA

Show details

Description:
John Wiley & Sons, 1996. Hard cover. Very Good/Very Good. A Complex Fate offers the first full-length look at Gustav Stickley, who rose from unknown cabinetmaker to the most vocal spokesman in America for the early twentieth-century aesthetic revolution that became known as the Craftsman Movement. In the face of the Modern Age, Stickley espoused the values of the medieval craftsman, influencing the design of furniture, pottery, metalwork, jewelry, bookbinding, leatherwork, and architecture. Author Barry Sanders chronicles the progress of Stickley's wide-ranging career, from his rise to fame and wealth to his ultimate financial ruin. Rare photographs and renderings of Stickley's designs enhance this compelling portrait of the man and his work.
Add to wish list
Item price
A$18.07
A$8.74 Delivery to USA
A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement
Stock photo: cover may vary

A Complex Fate: Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

by Sanders, Barry

  • Used
  • Hardback
  • first
Condition
Fine copy in fine dust jacket
Edition
1st
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9780471143925 / 0471143928
Quantity available
1
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A$18.37
A$5.88 Delivery to USA

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Description:
New York: John Wiley & Sons. Fine copy in fine dust jacket. 1996. 1st. hardcover. Tall 8vo, 192 pp. .
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Item price
A$18.37
A$5.88 Delivery to USA