---
title: "Zippers are primal and modern at the very same time. On the one hand,… — Tom Robbins Quote #70 | QuotesBy.net"
description: "Zippers are primal and modern at the very same time. On the one hand, your zipper is primitive and reptilian, on the other, mechanical and slick. A z… — a quote by Tom Robbins."
image: "https://quotesby.net/wp-content/themes/quotesby-editorial/assets/og-default.png"
---

> # Zippers are primal and modern at the very same time. On the one hand, your zipper is primitive and reptilian, on the other, mechanical and slick. A zipper is where the Industrial Revolution meets the Cobra Cult.

[Tom Robbins](https://quotesby.net/Tom-Robbins)\#70

[Contrast](https://quotesby.net/topics/contrast/)[Design](https://quotesby.net/topics/design/)[Modernity](https://quotesby.net/topics/modernity/)[Objects](https://quotesby.net/topics/objects/)

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## About this quote

What does it mean?A zipper blends primitive, instinctual qualities with modern mechanical function, representing a clash of eras and cultures.In plain termsA zipper is both ancient and modern, rough and sleek.What can you take from it?Everyday objects can mix old and new traits.

### Where it applies

- design thinking
- product development
- everyday observation

### Putting it to work

- notice design blends
- study material contrasts
- find hybrid solutions

### Questions to consider

- What other objects feel both ancient and modern?
- How do you see contrast in design?

### Another view

This is a poetic exaggeration rather than a functional analysis.

## More from Tom Robbins

1. > Water! Of all liquids on Earth, the only one chosen for scrubbin' and flushin'. The liquid they rinse baby's nappies in, the fluid that floods the gutters o' t…

[Permalink to quote \#69](https://quotesby.net/Tom-Robbins/69/ "Permalink to quote 69")
2. > A sense of humor, properly developed, is superior to any religion so far devised.

[Permalink to quote \#71](https://quotesby.net/Tom-Robbins/71/ "Permalink to quote 71")
3. > I deserve to be chained by night in a church basement without company o' cassette player if I'm not man enough to ask you for the teeniest, slightest brush of …

[Permalink to quote \#68](https://quotesby.net/Tom-Robbins/68/ "Permalink to quote 68")

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2. > 'I simply love what you've done with this place! (to Two-Face) Heavy Metal meets House & Garden! Ha ha ha! It's so...dark and gothic! Despisingly decedant! And…

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