108
BRAUN
Dieter Rams Quiet is better than loud. WORDS ALEC BANKS I L LU S T R AT I O N S Z AC H
T
here are certain names that have become synonymous with greatness in a particular field whose body of work will ensure that their legacy will never fade even when their tangible vessel has left this world. In the arts, paintings from Picasso, Monet, van Gogh and Klimt hang from the walls of the most prestigious and creative sanctuaries in the world. Their work is being appreciated solely through the power of sight as means of preservation. But for the work of Dieter Rams – perhaps one of the most influential figures in industrial design ever – his work runs the gamut of sensory appreciation and tells the story of functional usage. To know Dieter Rams is to know his “ten principles for good design.” Calling the world around him in the 1980s “an impenetrable confusion of forms, colors and noises,” he aimed to create certain tenets of what resonated with him after internal reflection as to the state of his own contributions to the muddled world. Thus, good design “is innovative, makes a product useful, is aesthetic, makes a product understandable, is unobtrusive, is honest, is long-lasting, is thorough down to the last detail, is environmentally friendly, and is as little design as possible.” Rams cemented the notion that innovative thinkers don’t break rules, they merely rewrite them. In 1955, renowned brand for small electrical appliances, Braun, hired a then 23-year-old Rams as an interior designer before he ultimately became the nucleus of Braun’s own design department. In their own words, Rams “gave Braun a corporate identity long before the term was even coined.” Credited with the creation of such game changers as the SK-4 record player, D-series of 35 mm film slide projectors, and ET66 calculator – the latter being utilized by Apple for the original iPhone calculator app – each Braun creation invokes the notion of unbridled possibilities. For his entire career Rams worked almost exclusively for Braun – where he retired in 1997 and Vitsœ – the brainchild of Niels Vitsœ and Otto Zapf whose goal was to realize the furniture designs of Rams. Working steadfastly with the blessings of Braun who saw the duality of his character and ambitions as only a strength for his technical achievements, Rams would eventually cook up such classics as the 606 Universal Shelving System and 620 Chair Program which “adapts to life’s inevitable changes.” His brilliance lay in the ability to offer up the brushstrokes and create a place where innovation could find a resting place. With technology pushing the boundaries on what is possible, it’s wise to remember something Dieter Rams once said. “Not the spectacular things are the important things. The unspectacular things are the important things, especially in the future.”
DIETER RAMS
109
Braun ET 66 Dieter Rams + Dietrich Lubs 1987
Braun Mach 2 Dieter Rams + Florian Seiffert 1971
110
BRAUN
Braun SK 55 phonosuper Dieter Rams + Hans Gugelot 1963
DIETER RAMS
111
Braun ABR 21 Dieter Rams + Dietrich Lubs 1978
Braun L46 wall-mountable flat speakers Dieter Rams 1963
112
BRAUN
Braun F30 B flash unit Dieter Rams 1959
DIETER RAMS
113
NIKE + RICCARDO TISCI 4 192349 508005
07
D €8, A €8, CHF 11, LUX €8, B €8.50, B €8.50, NL €9.50 I €9, F €9, SKR 80, DKR 80, NKR 80, UK £8
ISSUE 8 SPRING SUMMER 2014
AITOR THROUP FUTURE C.E VSCO GIVENCHY CARHARTT WIP 3 .1 P H I L L I P L I M