Am 20. Mai wird Dieter Rams 80. Vitsoe, Hersteller des von Rams 1960 entworfenen Regelsystems 606, hat aus diesem Anlass eine Rede des Designers veröffentlicht. Im Dezember 1976 hat Rams in New York diese Rede gehalten und darin sein Designcredo formuliert. Später, Anfang der Achtziger Jahre, hat er seine Gedanken noch einmal präzise in den berühmten zehn Regeln für gutes Design zusammengefasst. Viele heutige Designer, allen voran Apple Chefdesigner Jonathan Ive, beziehen sich ganz bewußt Rams Design-Ethos. Die Rede kann als historisches Dokument gelten und zeigt, wie wegweisend Rams Denkweise bereits vor 36 Jahren gewesen ist.
Dieter Rams: Design by Vitsœ
The ideas behind my work as a designer have to match with a company’s objectives. This principle applies to my work not only at Braun but also at Vitsœ. I have been working for these two companies for about 20 years and – I like to point out – only for these two companies.
I am convinced that design – at least in the terms I understand it – cannot be performed by someone outside the company. I am absolutely convinced that this is true if products are designed as part of a larger system, like we do at Vitsœ. In 1957 I began to develop a storage system that formed the basis of the company Vitsœ, which was founded in 1959. Thus the ideology behind my design is engrained within the company.
Ladies and gentlemen, design is a popular subject today. No wonder because, in the face of increasing competition, design is often the only product differentiation that is truly discernible to the buyer.
I am convinced that a well-thought-out design is decisive to the quality of a product. A poorly-designed product is not only uglier than a well-designed one but it is of less value and use. Worst of all it might be intrusive. The development and changes that we have initiated with our work at Vitsœ are, I believe, positive for the development of good design as a whole. The introduction of good design is needed for a company to be successful. However, our definition of success may be different to yours. Striving for good design is of social importance as it means, amongst other things, absolutely avoiding waste.
What is good design?
Product design is the total configuration of a product: its form, colour, material and construction. The product must serve its intended purpose efficiently. A designer who wants to achieve good design must not regard himself as an artist who, according to taste and aesthetics, is merely dressing-up products with a last- minute garment. The designer must be the gestaltingenieur or creative engineer. They synthesise the completed product from the various elements that make up its design. Their work is largely rational, meaning that aesthetic decisions are justified by an understanding of the product’s purpose.
I am convinced that people have an interest in what we are doing at Vitsœ since our products are useful; I expect they also appreciate the aesthetic that follows. These qualities are the result of progressive and intelligent problem solving. Functionality must be at the centre of good design.
A product must be functional in itself but it also must function as part of a wider system: the home. Vitsœ’s 606 Universal Shelving System is successful due to its high functionality and its ability to adapt to any environment. Vitsœ’s furniture does not shout; it performs its function in relative anonymity alongside furniture from any designer and in homes from any era. We make the effort to produce products like this for the intelligent and responsible users – not consumers – who consciously select products that they can really use. Good design must be able to coexist.
You cannot understand good design if you do not understand people; design is made for people. It must be ergonomically correct, meaning it must harmonise with a human being’s strengths, dimensions, senses and understanding.
Vitsœ’s direct contact with its customers has led to a deep understanding of people. Over the years, our understanding of how you use a shelf or an armchair has increased. We have educated and diligent people worldwide who understand how to plan systems in configurations that our customers may not necessarily have thought of at the beginning.
Order and proportion: only orderliness makes a product useful
All objects that are to be used must be subject to a clear order. The remarkable order of design at Vitsœ has the purpose of communicating the function of the object to the user. The design of a Vitsœ product clearly points out its purpose and its use – and facilitates them.
The order of the elements – their arrangement, their shape, their size and their colour – is based on a thoroughly-planned system. This system is the language of Vitsœ design. But this order is not self-serving; and I would not call it ideology because it is a practical necessity. For design to be understood by everyone – which good design should strive to do – it should be as simple as possible.
Design at Vitsœ brings all individual elements into proportion. An often-cited feature of the Vitsœ collection is its balance, its harmony, its belonging together. All structures, components and finishes coexist as a well-balanced and harmonious design that gives it usability.
The majority of products that we encounter in our day-to-day lives scream for attention or try to impress us with their magnificence or miniscule size. These objects try to dictate our relationships with them. Good design creates powerful long-lasting relationships with products as good design creates objects with balanced proportions; at Vitsœ we go further by trying to create objects in balanced proportion with people.
