Home decorating: Contemporary American folk art

摘要

Home decorating is an important creative outlet for many Americans. Homemakers go shopping and then create beautiful ensembles reflecting their personal identities. They show their connections to others through the display of family photographs and mementos as well as through the use of symmetry and containment in their arrangements. Items of nature are brought into the home and transformed into emblems of control. Especially in the living room, where formal presentations of the self prevail, homemakers create an image of order and decorum. Through the use of historical associations and formal arrangements, they reveal their desire to live the American dream and follow fashion. In more intimate areas of the interior, such as dens and kitchens, homemakers are concerned with obtaining a more informal atmosphere. These rooms are special domains of the family and close friends. The combination of formal and informal looks and material and spiritual orientations shows that individuals are not mindlessly following tradition or fashion but intentionally synthesizing the two. Exploring home decorating in the United States reveals the extent to which Americans balance communal influences and individual autonomy. Home decorating is thus an important genre of folklore studies and complements research on vernacular architecture.