Lower East
Just passed by a shop full of furnitures designed by Dieter Rams (the famous german Industrial Designer from Braun AG, whom we blogged on yesterday) at Torstrasse, Berlin. (Yes, our pictures are a bit strange; the shop was closed and quite some reflections came from the large windows.)
We later found out that that the shop was a gallery; Appel Design Gallery. They are right now and until 28.07.12 showing a selection of furniture by Dieter Rams.
Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 12AM to 6PM. Link to the gallery
Dieter Rams Möbel ©lowereast.dk
Dieter Rams Möbel ©lowereast.dk
Dieter Rams Möbel ©lowereast.dk
Dieter Rams Möbel ©lowereast.dk
Dieter Rams’ ten principles of “good design“. Lower East find so much inspiration in the work of Industrial Designer Dieter Rams these days. Rams were for many years head of design at Braun, and parallel to that he designed furnitures for Vitsoe. He is the man behind many innovative, ever-lasting and very beautifully designed Braun products. In a video from gestalten tv (link further down), he is quoted: “Design should not dominate things. Not dominate people. Should help people“. If you are into design and maybe need some inspiration, spend seven minutes watching the video. You won’t regret. We promise.
Dieter Rams
Rams (born in 1932) introduced the idea of sustainable development in his design and he opposed that design and products get out of date. Therefore he asked himself the question: is my design good design? The answers that apparantly came up formed his very inspiring and still very useful ten principles.
Good design (text from the internet):
▪ 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.
▪ 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 whilst disregarding anything that could possibly detract from it.
▪ Is aesthetic – The aesthetic quality of a product is integral to its usefulness because products are used every day and have an effect on people and their well-being. Only well-executed objects can be beautiful.
▪ Makes a product understandable – It clarifies the product’s structure. Better still, it can make the product clearly express its function by making use of the user’s intuition. At best, it is self-explanatory.
▪ 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.
▪ 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.
▪ Is long-lasting – It avoids being fashionable and therefore never appears antiquated. Unlike fashionable design, it lasts many years – even in today’s throwaway society.
▪ 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.
▪ 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.
▪ 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. Back to purity, back to simplicity.