Philosophy of the Home

Based on the BBC television series, John Berger’s Ways of Seeing is a unique look at the way we view art, published as part of the Penguin on Design series in Penguin Modern Classics. ‘Seeing comes before words. The child looks and recognizes before it can speak.’ ‘But there is also another sense in which seeing comes before words. […]

The daily lives of ordinary people are replete with objects, common things used in commonplace settings. These objects are our constant companions in life. As such, writes Soetsu Yanagi, they should be made with care and built to last, treated with respect and even affection. They should be natural and simple, sturdy and safe – […]

What if we could learn to look instead of see, listen instead of hear, feel instead of touch? Former monk Ryunosuke Koike shows how, by incorporating simple Zen practices into our daily lives, we can reconnect with our five senses and live in a more peaceful, positive way When we focus on our senses and […]

One of the last surviving members of the futurist generation, Bruno Munari’s Design as Art is an illustrated journey into the artistic possibilities of modern design translated by Patrick Creagh published as part of the ‘Penguin on Design’ series in Penguin Modern Classics. ‘The designer of today re-establishes the long-lost contact between art and the […]