CARTE BLANCHE

“good design is as little design as possible”

dieter rams, from: the 10 principles of good design

fritz frenkler

there is nothing man-made that cannot be associated with design. our world is designed. many people are not aware of this – for them, design only means “making things pretty”. even some designers still think they need to create something “pretty”, this is what the understanding of design suffers from.

however, today, design is much more than that; it is more than only that form must follow function. as designers, we need to look at the overall system, the application and necessity of a product, product system or service (product). we must combine awareness of the societal context and the challenges of our time with technological developments. it is about designing socially, ecologically, and humanly appropriate products that have a positive effect on our society and environment. technology cannot be political, but design can, and it must take a stand. we must all accept the challenge of representing the interests of a decent life. this includes not only producing desirable products, but also making it clear to companies and organisations that a new product does not work and is not necessary if it is socially questionable or ecologically problematic.

ecology (sustainability) is one important factor to consider when designing and manufacturing a product. in a contemporary society that celebrates abundance and consumerism, which has led to the catastrophic climate issues, reduction and sustainability should be put at the centre of the design approach.

reduction is often associated with restraints and austerity. however, it does not necessarily need to lead to limitations but rather can boost efficiency and encourage innovations. we don’t need to buy new products, if the ones we purchased initially are of a good quality. we don’t need to produce so much waste, contributing to soil and water pollution, if there is more value attached to the choices of materials at the production stages. through qualitative research, high functionality, and sustainable resources, design can only benefit from reduction.

in general, the idea of reduction can also be traced back to japanese buddhism and the philosophy of sen no rikyū. this tradition travelled through history into modern times and can be found currently in a variety of fields – from architecture and product design to fashion and art. it was first brought from japan to europe by the dutch and manifested itself in the works of de stijl, bauhaus, vhutemas, hfg ulm, and later in the designs of dieter rams for braun. in japan the concept of reduction gained increasing popularity once again in the 20th century. some contemporary representatives of this minimalist approach are the designers and architects shirō kuramata, ken'ya hara, tadao andō, sori yanagi, isamu noguchi, kenzō tange, kishō kurokawa, kengo kuma, shigeru ban, and kenji ekuan.

taking dental technology developed by fritz frenkler and his f/p design teams for the japanese dental product manufacturer morita as an example, we can clearly see the strength of a formally minimalistic and sustainable design philosophy that inspires a new generation of japanese and german designers as well as other manufacturers. with increasing technological complexity of the devices, fritz frenkler relies on reduction, this creates precision, coherence, and clarity. these elements provide security in the use of medical devices and increase the necessary hygiene. they are easily recognised and offer the user a calm and peaceful treatment environment.

dental x-ray / veraview x800 / j. morita. mfg. corporation, kyoto, japan / design by fritz frenkler and f/p design

dental handpiece maintenance unit / lubrina 2 / j. morita. mfg. corporation, kyoto, japan / design by fritz frenkler and f/p design

intraoral camera / penviewer / j. morita. mfg. corporation, kyoto, japan / design by fritz frenkler and f/p design

endomotor with apex locator / triauto zx2 / j. morita. mfg. corporation, kyoto, japan / design by fritz frenkler and f/p design

dental treatment unit / soaric / j. morita. mfg. corporation, kyoto, japan / design by fritz frenkler and f/p design

fritz frenkler is an industrial designer, founder of f/p design with studios in munich, berlin, and kyoto; emeritus of excellence, technical university of munich (TUM); member of the if design foundation, hanover, and director of the architecture section of the akademie der künste, berlin.