| Abstract: | This article offers a unique study of the material form of the television receiver between the 1930s and 1960s. Very little has been written to date on the history of the television set as an artefact. Yet its design and appearance played a major role in the acceptance of television in the home. The meanings of television sets are explored, from the design of wooden cabinets as family furniture to the shaping of portable sets as symbols of progress. A case study of British events is conducted, with reference made to American and other nations’ developments in so far as they relate to Britain's television receiver history. The article confirms that the material form of the television receiver contributed to a narrative of domesticity and progress by reconfiguring the relationship between home and communication technology. The fusion of craft and futurist ideas in design reflected tensions about the receiver as an expression of traditional domestic values, of progress and modernity, and as an icon. |
