Making

Making creates knowledge, builds environments and transforms lives. Anthropology, archaeology, art and architecture are all ways of making, and all are dedicated to exploring the conditions and potentials of human life. In this exciting book, Tim Ingold ties the four disciplines together in a way that has never been attempted before. In a radical departure from conventional studies that treat art and architecture as compendia of objects for analysis, Ingold proposes an anthropology and archaeology not of but with art and architecture. He advocates a way of thinking through making in which sentient practitioners and active materials continually answer to, or ‘correspond’, with one another in the generation of form. Making offers a series of profound reflections on what it means to create things, on materials and form, the meaning of design, landscape perception, animate life, personal knowledge and the work of the hand. It draws on examples and experiments ranging from prehistoric stone tool-making to the building of medieval cathedrals, from round mounds to monuments, from flying kites to winding string, from drawing to writing. The book will appeal to students and practitioners alike, with interests in social and cultural anthropology, archaeology, architecture, art and design, visual studies and material culture.

"In his latest book, Tim Ingold persuasively argues for anthropology’s transformational capacity and promotes serious reflection on the need for anthropologists to correspond with the world. His focus on handwork in art, building, and the making of tools beautifully illustrates ‘thinking through making’ and learning by doing. This accessible book makes an excellent and timely contribution to a core area of anthropological research, and invites the reader to engage with the fascinating work emerging from it." - Trevor Marchand, School of Oriental & African Studies, UK"Ingold is a joy to read. With Making, he continues to enliven the social sciences with his distinctively compelling and critical reflections on anthropological, archaeological, architectural and artistic practices. This volume will be useful to all who are striving to integrate art and research, making and thinking, practice and theory." - Ian Alden Russell, David Winton Bell Gallery, Brown University, USA"For architects it is an absolute must to discover and absorb the work of this friendly outsider whose ideas touch the heart of what we do." - Lars Spuybroek, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA"Unafraid to ask bold questions and propose daring answers, Tim Ingold has developed a distinctive voice. In the process, he has staked out an increasingly influential position that touches on a wide range of disciplines." - Webb Keane, University of Michigan, USA

Tim Ingold is Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Aberdeen, UK. His books include Lines, The Perception of the Environment and Being Alive.