a brief history of...publication

7/28/2019 A Brief History of...Publication

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LESS BUT

BETTER


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Good design is making something intelligible and memorable.Great design is making something memorable and meaningful.

DIETER RAMS


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Intro...........A brief history of........Modernist Philosophy

through Design.

This publication intents to explore the progression of modernist

philosophies through time and the success of functional design.


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Modernism Dieter Rams

Braun

Apple

The Bauhaus


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From the beginning, Modernism had the urgency of

Utopianism: to make the world a better place by design.

-MASSIMO VIGNELLI, 1991

At the core of Modernismwas a Utopian belief that theworld had to be fundamentally

rethought through the power

of designers creations.

Through the application of

new technology and materials,

combined with a single, all

embracing methodology, it

was believed that these new

approaches to design could

signicantly improve peoples

physical and psychological

conditions. Modernists believed

in a total art, the idea of artand design working together

to enhance every part of the

manufactured environment, from

architecture, interior, furniture,

product, graphic and fashion

design as well as painting,

sculpture, lm, photography,

prints and collage.


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The new life of iron and the machine, the roar of automobiles, the glitter ofelectric lights, the whirring of propellers, have awoken the soul.

-KAZIMIR MALEVICH , 1916

The emergence of new technologies was

dominant to the conception of a new

Utopian world. By the 1920s, the machine

revolutionized modernist ideas towards

design, society and the environment.

The machine challenged these ideas by

driving design, creating a simple, practical

aesthetic that was promoted by those who

saw a beauty in the machine -- a beauty in

appearance and function.

From the goal of uniting art and

techniques by producing well designed

goods for the modern mass to the attempt

to put life in order. (J. Schwartz, F, 2006)

The machine brought the possibility

of mass production, producing large

quantities of replicas of traditional luxury

items that were once unfeasible. This made

a wider range of consumer items affordable

to the average citizen.


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It is the pervading law of all things organic and inorganic, ofall things physical and metaphysical, of all things human andall things superhuman, of all true manifestations of the head,of the heart, of the soul, that the life is recognizable in itsexpression, that form ever follows function. This is the law.

-LOUIS SULLIVAN, 1896

The phrase Form Follows Function originallyderived from the American architect, LouisSullivan. However, the Bauhaus followed on from

Sullivans ideas by applying this ideology to

their designs. The structure, materials used and

construction of the designs dictated the outward

appearance, so much so, that they were described

as styless. This elimination of ornament andconstructional techniques paralleled technology

and was elevated to a status like never before.


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The phrase Form Follows Function can be interpreted in two ways:

Descriptive:beauty results from purity of function

Prescriptive: aesthetic considerations in design should be secondary to function

This ideology inuenced some of the most iconic and timeless

designs within the modernist era however, as technology

continued to develop and societies needs changed as time

progressed, the aesthetic qualities of a design can be just as

important to the success of a design as the functionality.


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Dieter Rams has been

described as one

of the most inuential

industrial designers of the

20th century. His career

began when the German

consumer electronics

manufacturer, Braun, who

recruited him in 1955.

Working alongside his team of designers, Rams created a

strong visual identity for the products at Braun that werew

elegant with an exquisite simplicity, user friendliness and

extreme versatility due to the rigorous experimentation of

materials and obsessive attention to detail.

With this in mind, Rams describes his approach to design

as Weniger, aber besser which translates to Less, but

better. This phrase could be seen to be an updated and

improved version of Louis Sullivans Form Follows Fun ction,

he goes on to dene his approach to good design with ten

principles that reect the most important elements of what he

considered to be good design.

Good design is as little design as possible.

DIETER RAMS


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Good design is innovative

The possibilities for progression

are not, by any means, exhausted.Technological development isalways offering new opportunitiesfor original designs. Butimaginative design alwaysdevelops in tandem with improvingtechnology, and can never be anend in itself.


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Good design makes a

product useful

A product is bought to be used. Ithas to satisfy not only functional,but also psychological andaesthetic criteria. Good designemphasizes the usefulness ofa product whilst disregardinganything that could detract from it.


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Good design is aesthetic

The aesthetic quality of a product isintegral to its usefulness becauseproducts are used every day andhave an effect on people and theirwell-being. Only well-executedobjects can be beautiful.


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Good design makes a

product understandable

It claries the products structure.Better still, it can make the productclearly express its function bymaking use of the users intuition.At best, it is self-explanatory.


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Good design is unobtrusive

Products fullling a purpose are liketools. They are neither decorativeobjects nor works of art. Theirdesign should therefore be bothneutral and restrained, to leaveroom for the users self-expression.


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Good design is honest

It does not make a product appearmore innovative, powerful orvaluable than it really is. It doesnot attempt to manipulate theconsumer with promises thatcannot be kept.


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Good design is long-lasting

It avoids being fashionableand therefore never appearsantiquated. Unlike fashionabledesign, it lasts many years evenin todays throwaway society.


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Good design is thorough

down to the last detail

Nothing must be arbitrary or leftto chance. Care and accuracy inthe design process show respecttowards the consumer.


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Good design is

environmentally-friendly

Design makes an importantcontribution to the preservationof the environment. It conservesresources and minimizes physicaland visual pollution throughout thelifecycle of the product.


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Good design is as little

design as possible

Less, but better because itconcentrates on the essentialaspects, and the products arenot burdened with non-essentials.Back to purity, back to simplicity.


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The new design concept implemented

by Braun began from the mid

1950s and was closely associated with

German modern industrial design. The

ethos combined the continuing ideas

of functionality, technology and use

of experimental materials. Headed by

Dr. Fritz Eichler, Braun created its rst

design department in 1956. The team

collaborated with the school of design in

Ulm that had continued the work set outby the Bauhaus movement. A youthful

Dieter Rams was apart of this concept

and soon became a key gure that

inuenced many of Brauns products.


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The Braun collection consists of around 5,600

products from a 90-year period. Braun and its

design team managed to give technology a clear

shape, wrapping it in modern materials. Some of the

products from the Braun designs reveal the impact

they have had on other designers to this day.


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At the head of this new

design era is Apples senior

vice president of industrial

design, Jonathan Ive. His

passion for simplicity and

honest design resonates

through the products at Apple

creating desirable and quality

designs. Ives designs have

been considered to meet the

needs of a contemporary

society however, at the core of

his philosophy which can be

clearly seen in many of Apples

products is Dieter Rams 10

principles for good design.

Apple is a brand that

has embraced the

philosophies of modernist

design and contributed to it

in its own right. They have

found a balance between

the technological advances,

functionality of the designs

and unadorned aesthetics to

achieve perfectly considered

products to suit the needs of

a modern society.


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The similarities between Apple and Braun are clear to see and

provide an insight into the success of modernist philosophies

throughout time. Although modernism had its aws, the

ongoing presence in design continues to inuence some of the

most successful brands of the time, proving that simplicity and

functional design, has and can survive the test of time.


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Good design is making something intelligible and memorable.Great design is making something memorable and meaningful.

DIETER RAMS


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