The Industrial Revolution
Before I started my research on what was going on during the
industrial revolution, I took a look and acknowledged myself on what triggered this massive turning point in the
history of mankind. We state that it is a turning point because it changed the
manner of how people lived. The industrial revolution was a series of events
that occurred in about 200 years, which began in Great Britain and spread to
Western Europe and the United Sates.
Pre Industrial society
Before the industrial revolution the majority of
the population lived in the countryside where most families had their own land.
They grew crops and held farm animals for home consumption. In the beginning of
the eighteenth century the agricultural revolution took place, this revolution
created new and better ways of crop rotation and livestock utilization. This
also gave the ability to farmers to create a diversity of wheat and vegetables
and also gave them the ability to support more livestock. This increased food
production and so the British population could now be fed at low cost and with
less effort than before. This change had an impact on society as the population
became better nourished and healthier. Later during the agricultural revolution
the government introduced enclosure acts, these acts allowed the wealthy to
purchase public fields and push out small scaled farmers. This meant that the
agricultural revolution created a great environment for industrialization as
these workers provided labour to new industries during the industrial
revolution.
Industrialization
Design changed in the same way society changed, prior to the
industrial revolution manufacturing industries were often handmade and done in
homes, it was done using traditional tools and basic machinery. During the
industrial revolution a number of inventions took place and due to these
inventions these industries were transformed by the industrialization that was
taking place. These inventions also affected wester foreign countries, due to
migration. Invention were replicated or developed depending on their
requirements. An embargo act took place in America which restricted curtain
British products. This created a greater need for America to produce their own
goods domestically.
Key technological inventions during the industrial
revolution
The cotton industry was one of dose technological changes
which without them the industrial revolution wouldn’t have happened. It all
started from the spinning jenny, an invention by James Hargreaves in 1768. This
machine allowed the person using the machine to spin multiple balls of yard
instead of using just one at a time. This made the process much faster, it also
started being used for mass consumption.
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| The Spinning Frame By Richard Arkwright |
Later Richard Arkwright went on to improve the yarn
production by inventing the spinning frame. His main objective was to speed
this process up. It was a machine that worked by a water power wheel, this
machine could be replicated and make factories as big as he wanted as long as there
was a good supply of water. Due to this factor factories had to be built near
rivers because of the machines demand for water. Historians state that
Arkwright didn’t just invent the spinning machine but he also invented the
modern factory. These factories created jobs and soon enough Britain became a
power house.
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| The Steam engiine |
The steam engine was another great success from the
industrial revolution, James watt wasn’t the inventor of the steam engine but
is known for making the first reliable and for perfecting the steam engine.
These engines were powered by coal or by steam, and this allowed factory owners
to have greater control on were they wanted to build their factory. The steam
engine also contributed in the development of railroad technologies improving
transportation. This meant that civilians and goods could be transported faster
and easier.
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| Iron making |
Iron was also a key mineral for the industrial revolution,
it was growing and changing at a fast pace due to its demand. It was even more
at a demand after inventors discovered a more efficient and less expensive
method to produce cast iron. Later a process was developed in order to refine
iron which created a strong product which could be easily used in all kinds of
factories to manufacture their goods.
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| The Crystal Palace |
The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure built to house the 1851 great exhibition. More than 14,000 exhibitors participated in order to show the achievements that were developed during the industrial revolution.
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| Mass production during the industrial revolution |
Impacts on design
Design was shaped and changed during the industrial
revolution due to mass production and mass consumption. Before the rise of mass
consumption products were manufactured on a made to order basis by skilled
craftsmen. On the other hand mass production gave manufacturers the ability to
produce consumer needs in large quantities; this resulted in lower prices for
consumers. Producing in the mass comes as an advantage for manufacturers as
products can be made in same amount of time as producing products individually.
Factory owners also realised that products that were made handmade were
resulting in more money spent paying wages to people that were manufacturing
the parts. Later on when machinery was well developed, objects could then be
made using molds and robotical equipment. Another effect that mass production
made was that human workers didn’t need to be trained professionally to do the
job, this came at an advantage for factory owners as workers required lower
wages.
Characteristics that products had before and after the
the industrial revolution
Pre-Industrial design
made for small markets, client selected their designs
meaning that each and every product could be custom made, made by hand by
artists and crafts workers, used rare materials with luxurious elements,
traditional, good quality and valuable.
Post-industrial design
Made for the middle
class in large quantities for biggest markets, appealed to bankers, merchants
and industrialists, popular and mass produced products, economical, practical
materials, inexpensive and replaceable
Pioneer industrialists / producers of industrial design
included
Thomas Sheraton
He was a British furniture designer back in the 18th
century. His peak was during industrial revolution but in the eighteenth
century furniture was still being made by skilled craftsman. He mostly
published chairs that show a Neo-classical style.
The Sheraton chair
The Sheraton chair was one of his designs done in the 18th
century. The neo classical movement began in the mid-18th century
and we can see how influenced he was by this style in his design. It has
decorative aspects, delicate details, elegant artefacts and smooth edges. It is
all finely carved by hand using heavy dense mahogany. It is quite a rich chair
which was certainly designed for the rich or middle class.
Michael Thonet
Michael Thonet was one of the pioneers in the design of bent
shaped furniture. After undergoing training in Germany Thonet went on to develop
a steam process in order to soften the wood and allowing him to bend it easily.
After several years working for other companies he set up his own factory to manufacture
his own chairs in large numbers.
Thonet’s No.14 Chair
The No.14 chair which is made out of benchwood is an early example of
mass production, more than 15 million of them were made between 1859 and 1893. One
of its main advantages was that it could be easily dissembled making it easier
for transportation and exportation. Thonet was way apart from his time as his
designs influenced modernism. It has a form follows function design, he only
adds the relevant infrastructures of the chair without any fancy decorative
carvings. It has quite a minimalistic design due to the few materials it has. Its
curved legs help be stable even when heavy loads are applied. Thonet also
considered practicality as the chair is light due to the low amount of
materials it has. Some factors of how this chair made huge success were because
it was cheap due to its ability to be built in mass production making it available
for a wide range of markets and classes.
Conclusion
In the two examples above I also managed to observe the
different styles and mentalities of designers during the industrial revolution.
Were Sheraton’s designs were decorative and luxurious, Thones designs were
minimalist and practical. Both designers had different influences and aimed for
different types of classes in society. Sheraton’s designs were done early on
during the industrial revolution were craftsmanship was still at its peak, on
the other hand, later on during the industrial revolution, Thonet saw the advantages
in mass production and took the opportunity to boost his income by emphasising
on practicality and reliability.
