Design & Desire in the Twentieth Century

10. Good design is as little design as possible

Less, but better – because it concentrates on the essential aspects, and the products are not burdened with non-essentials.

According to an article on the Design Museum website, “As a smoker, Rams loved to design lighters as ‘small sculptural objects’ which should be ‘a pleasure to look at and to use.’ His chief challenge with the T2 was identifying the precise place on the side of the cylinder at which the thumb could apply the greatest pressure to the magnetic ignition pad” (1).

“The Braun Cylindric is part of the permanent collection of Architecture and Design at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York” (2).

Dieter Rams, Braun Cylindric T2 Lighter, (1968)
Source: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_iI8qckk8NXY/TELW9bo_HTI/AAAAAAAABVM/pEhhcxLWvfc/s200/braun_lighter.jpg

To end this series on Dieter Rams’s 10 Principles for Good Design here’s a video featuring comments made by Design Museum’s Director Deyan Sudjic and designer Michael Czerwinsk during Design Museum’s 2009 Dieter Rams retrospective “Less and More - The Design Ethos of Dieter Rams”.

References
1. Design Museum. (2007). Dieter Rams Industrial Designer (1932-). Retrieved  from: http://designmuseum.org/design/dieter-rams
 
2. Table Lighters Collectors’ Guide. (2010). Braun Cylindric T2 Table Lighter, Dieter Rams, 1968. Retreived from: http://table-lighters.blogspot.com/2010/07/braun-cylindric-t2-table-lighter-dieter.htm

9. Good design is environmentally friendly

Design makes an important contribution to the preservation of the environment. It conserves resources and minimizes physical and visual pollution throughout the lifecycle of the product.

The AB 1 Alarm clock, like many of Dieter Rams’s designs, is compact and straightforward. There are no unnecessary parts or decoration that would have consumed extra resources.  If an item is thoughtfully designed and manufactured, generally it will last longer. An attractive timepiece is more likely to be kept and then passed on for others to use, rather than thrown away.

Dietrich Lubs and Dieter Rams, Braun AB 1 Alarm Clock, (1971 updated 1987)
Source: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_U7N6CH5mIhQ/SsJxoNo5lsI/AAAAAAAACbw/KyhQ0Mk4XAA/s400/braunclockalarm.jpg

Read Melissa Goldstein’s interview with Rams:
http://moreintelligentlife.com/blog/melissa-goldstein/qa-dieter-rams-industrial-design-legend

8. Good design is thorough down to the last detail

Nothing must be arbitrary or left to chance. Care and accuracy in the design process show respect towards the consumer.

Rams talks about the design of the Braun SK 61 in this interview: http://www.vitsoe.com/en/gb/footer/transcripts/transcript-for-tva-talk

Dieter Rams & Hans Gugelot, Braun SK 61, a.k.a. Snow White’s Coffin, (1956)
Source: http://braundesigns.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/pph.jpeg

6. Good design is honest

It does not make a product more innovative, powerful or valuable than it really is. It does not attempt to manipulate the consumer with promises that cannot be kept.

Dieter Rams, Braun Electric Shaver, (1970)
Source: http://designmuseum.org/media/item/4827/-1/103_7Lg.jpg

5. Good design is unobtrusive

Products fulfilling a purpose are like tools. They are neither decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should therefore be both neutral and restrained, to leave room for the user’s self-expression.

Dieter Rams and Andreas Hackbarth, Desklight RHa,  (1981-1984)
Source: http://www.tecnolumen.com/images/DH_RHa_1_45_Desklamp.jpg

4. Good design makes a product understandable

It clarifies the product’s structure. Better still, it can make the product talk. At best, it is self-explanatory.

Need we add anything more?

Dieter Rams, Braun DR Coffeemakers, (1985)
Source:  http://www.austinlaverty.com/dieterrams/images/portfolioImages/bigDR.jpg

3. Good design is aesthetic

The aesthetic quality of a product is integral to its usefulness because products we use every day affect our person and our well-being. But only well-executed objects can be beautiful.

Braun LE1 Electrostatic Loud Speaker, based on a speaker designed by Peter J. Walker, was introduced by Braun in 1960. Rams was asked to design a case that would “match the special styling of the Braun products” (1). Unfortunately the speaker lacked deep bass that was so popular among rock n’ roll enthusiasts. This, along with its high cost of manufacturing the LE1 led to its quick demise.  “In the early 1960s the Braun Company cancelled the production of the LE1, and in 1990 the complete production line of audio products came to an end” (1).

Rams’ design of the Braun LE1 continues to influence today’s designers as many observers have noted the similarity between the design of the LE1 and Jonathan Ive’s Apple iMac.

Dieter Rams, Braun LE1 Electrostatic Loud Speaker, (1960)
Source: http://designmuseum.org/media/item/4824/-1/103_3Lg.jpg

Jonathan Ive, Apple iMac, (2007)

Source: http://thehottestgadgets.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/apple_imac.png

Reference
1. One Thing Audio (n.d.). Quad ESL 57, Modifications, Other manufacturers using the Quad ESL 57. Retrieved from: http://www.onethingaudio.net/FOR/QUA/57/9512-QUA-57-MOD-OTH.htm

2. Good design makes a product useful
A product is bought to be used. It has to satisfy certain criteria, not only functional, but also psychological and aesthetic. Good design emphasizes the usefulness of a product while disregarding anything that could possibly detract from it.

Dieter Rams and Thomas Merkel, sdr+ Low Table Program 010, (2001)
Source: http://www.dailyicon.net/magazine/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/low01dailyicon.jpg

See more work by Rams’ collaborator, Thomas Merkel at Stylepark.

For the next two weeks Design and Desire will be running a series on Dieter Ram’s Ten Principles for Good Design. Each day we’ll illustrate a principle with a piece of Ram’s work and perhaps provide some commentary and perhaps links to an interview or video clip.

1. Good design is innovative

The possibilities for innovation are not, by any means, exhausted. Technological development is always offering new opportunities for innovative design. But innovative design always develops in tandem with innovative technology, and can never be an end in itself.

Dieter Rams, Braun P1 pocket record player, (1959) and T41 pocket radio, (1956)
Source: http://designmuseum.org/media/item/4825/-1/103_4Lg.jpg