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Design, lifestyles and sustainability. Aesthetic consumption in a world of abundance

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  • Peter Dobers
  • Lars Strannegård

Abstract

This paper strives for a conceptualization of sustainability, design and contemporary consumption. By sketching out how effective production systems have created an abundance of products, the paper links this development to the aestheticization of society and an increased interest in design. In market economies characterized by profusion, corporations engage in activities filling their offerings with aura, aesthetics, symbols and meaning. In such lands of plenty, conspicuous consumption becomes a thoroughly expressive activity and highly problematic for actors with ambitions to design a sustainable future. Our conclusion is that sustainability must ultimately be seen as intertwined with social processes such as fashion, identity and identity construction. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

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  • Peter Dobers & Lars Strannegård, 2005. "Design, lifestyles and sustainability. Aesthetic consumption in a world of abundance," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(5), pages 324-336, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:14:y:2005:i:5:p:324-336
    DOI: 10.1002/bse.495
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    2. Fikret Korhan Turan & Saadet Cetinkaya, 2022. "The role of aesthetics and art in organizational sustainability: A conceptual model and exploratory study in higher education," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(1), pages 83-95, February.
    3. Chong‐Wen Chen, 2022. "Approaching sustainable development goals: Inspirations from the Arts and Crafts movement to reshape production and consumption patterns," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(6), pages 1671-1681, December.
    4. Christian Fuentes, 2014. "Green Materialities: Marketing and the Socio‐material Construction of Green Products," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(2), pages 105-116, February.
    5. Thomas Berker & Helen Jøsok Gansmo, 2010. "Paradoxes of design: energy and water consumption and the aestheticization of Norwegian bathrooms 1990-2008," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 18(3), pages 135-149.
    6. Johan Jansson, 2011. "Consumer eco‐innovation adoption: assessing attitudinal factors and perceived product characteristics," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 20(3), pages 192-210, March.

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