Things Come Apart

Book excerpt: This design-savvy paperback uses beautiful photography of exploded and deconstructed objects to conjure the childlike joy of taking something apart to see how it works. In Things Come Apart, fifty design classics—arranged by size and intricacy—are beautifully displayed, piece by piece, exploding in midair and dissected in real-time, frame-by-frame video stills. Welcome to Todd McLellan’s unique photographic vision of the material world. The new paperback edition of the best selling Things Come Apart comes equipped with a fresh, design-savvy package, and includes five new projects that reveal the inner workings of some of the world’s most iconic designs. From SLR camera to mantle clock to espresso machine, from iPad to bicycle to grand piano, every single component of each object is made visible. In addition to showcasing the quality and elegance of older designs, these disassembled objects show that even the most intricate modern technologies can be broken down and understood. Stunning photography is interspersed with essays by notable figures from the world of restoration, DIY, and design innovation, who discuss historical examples of teardowns, disassembly, and reverse engineering. Things Come Apart conjures the childlike joy of taking something apart to see how it works, and will appeal to anyone with a curiosity about the material world.