Eye appeal is buy appeal: The design, mediation and consumption of Kenwood's kitchen appliances, 1947-2020

本项目将批判性地探讨肯伍德制造有限公司产品的设计、中介和消费。学生将专注于从1947年成立到现在的一段尚未确定的时期。将特别强调在商店、百货公司、贸易和公共展览、国家和农业展览中作为销售技术的展示，这是一个迄今为止被忽视的研究领域。这些调解策略将通过口头和书面的证词与肯伍德产品的实际消费者体验进行比较和对比。这将在家用电器消费的更广泛背景下进行，并包括对当代技术和消费者的性别和阶级身份的批判性调查。该项目利用了科学博物馆的肯伍德和相关藏品。在朴茨茅斯大学工作的学生将有机会访问肯伍德哈凡特总部附近的档案，以及最近在春季艺术和遗产中心举办的HLF资助的展览和纪录片“肯伍德在哈凡特”的研究材料。学生将建立设计、调解、流通和使用的物体历史，提供有价值的见解，帮助科学博物馆为未来的展示、解释和收集策略提供模型的发展。

This project will critically explore the design, mediation and consumption of Kenwood Manufacturing Company Ltd's products. The student will focus on a yet unspecified period between its founding in 1947 to the present.There will be a particular emphasis on demonstrations in shops, department stores, trade and public exhibitions, country and agricultural shows as a selling technique, a hitherto neglected area of study.These mediation strategies will be compared and contrasted with the actual consumer experience of Kenwood products through oral and written testimonies. This will be set within the broader context of domestic appliance consumption and include a critical investigation of contemporary gendered and class identities of technologies and consumers.The project draws on the Science Museum's Kenwood and related holdings. Based at the University of Portsmouth, the student will have access to nearby archives at Kenwood's Havant headquarters and research material from the recent HLF funded exhibition and documentary film 'Kenwood in Havant' at The Spring Arts and Heritage Centre.The student will build object histories of design, mediation, circulation and use, providing valuable insights that will help the Science Museum in informing the development of a model for future displays, interpretation and collecting strategies.