In materia di materiali

According to common sense, matters and materials are something concrete and tangible, a given and objective phenomenal reality, obvious and banal. However, beneath the patina of evidence that covers them, they have a significant value in our lives: they take on social and cultural meanings, influence the formation of collective and individual identities, and underlie worldviews. In other words, there is an elemental and material dimension of signification that invests human and social experience in the round. By focusing on these issues, this paper identifies some directions for research that are far from complete. On the other hand, when viewed through a semiotic lens, materials are transformed from matters of fact into matters of concern.