Shanghai Housewares

The numerous items of everyday material culture that we employ in housework, cleaning, office work and entertainment are more than mere disposable objects. In a sense, they represent one of the ways for us to understand the idiosyncratic lifestyles and traditions of various places and peoples. A great number of these household items and daily necessities come from the handiwork of anonymous craftsmen, who have learned their skills through family inheritance or apprenticeship.

This book presents 120 selected items of everyday use, currently available in Shanghai in one way or another. Alongside photographs and illustrations, the book also includes interviews with craftsmen living in Shanghai, who specialize in bamboo, wood, straw, iron, and cloth, to portray and share the endeavors of craftsmen as a whole, as well as the intimate details of their lives in Shanghai. Hopefully, this book will help to introduce the ideas of environmental friendliness and resource preservation to readers looking for novel concepts, and to people who care about the development of Shanghai.

Text in English and Chinese.