Form Follows Function
By Peter Hewitt —
A couple of weeks ago a friend and I checked out an exhibition of contemporary sculpture, none of which changed my life. As we left, however, I saw a hammer that some workman had left behind, and thought to myself “that hammer is the best-looking object here.”
Then I got to thinking about tools in general: pliers, wrenches, saws, and planes. And garden tools like shovels, rakes, hoes, and trowels.
Musical instruments came to mind: trumpets, tubas, violins, harps, even pianos, if they’re not too fancied up.
Sports equipment also make the list: tennis rackets, bicycles, golf clubs, canoes, skates, rowing shells, and – especially – sailboats.
Also cars and airplanes.
No, there’s a kind of beauty to these things because they’re made to do something, and the better they do it, the better they look.
Form follows function.
Peter Hewitt is a former resident of Dublin who retired to RiverMead along with several other Dublin residents.