This peer-reviewed chapter is the first in the Surface Tensions volume, and sets out a theoretical and contextual rationale for the consideration of many aspects of surface, linking this to the chapters that follow. Like the anthology itself, the chapter considers surface under three headings: time and work; textiles and skin; depth and im/permeability – synthesising material from a broad theoretical literature to create new insights. The chapter's basic premise is that 'surface', whether defined in binary opposition to terms such as 'depth' or 'structure', or in more complex ways, is a crucial category in the analysis of designed objects, in the past or present, and particularly in their communicative qualities and their ongoing relationships with users.

The book is interdisciplinary in nature, and fills an important gap in the literature on design and material culture. The proposal for it was assessed and peer-reviewed by two independent readers. The book itself is the final outcome of the Surface Tensions research network, which held two symposia events with papers given by researchers working in design history, material culture, anthropology, fashion and textile history and theory, and creative practice.

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