Aesthetic Plenitude

The New York Sun comments on Virginia Postrel' new book, The Substance of Style. She explains that aesthetics have an important influence on economics, noting that many purchases or repurchases of personal, fashion, or household items are based on style, not necessity. These variations of available designs add "huge amounts of value to the economy in ways that defy conventional economic analysis and therefore mask the economy's true growth."

Her theories of the intersection of aesthetics and economics intrigue me, and perhaps I'll have time to read more than this somewhat-decent review of her theses.

Buying Sofas,Stealing Beauty
- posted by JW Walthall at 1:07 AM | Permanent Link | 0 comments