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Dieter Rams
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thumb|Dieter Rams
Dieter Rams (born 20 May 1932) is a German designer who is most closely associated with the consumer products company Braun, the furniture company Vitsœ, and the functionalist school of industrial design. His unobtrusive approach and belief in "less, but better" design has influenced the practice of design, as well as 20th century aesthetics and culture.
Quotes
When I started at Braun there were difficulties between the designers and engineers, as there are in many companies, but I noticed that the engineers liked to have a brandy, so I'd buy a bottle of good cognac to share with them. To be a good designer, you have to be half-psychologist.
"Reviving Dieter Rams's pragmatism" New York Times (12 November 2006)
Design isn't marketing, but more and more companies are treating it like that. There should be an absolute commitment to design and technology, and they have to go together.
"Reviving Dieter Rams's pragmatism" New York Times (12 November 2006)
The first Braun period was marked by the Ulm school, through Hans Gugelot, in the sphere of product design and Otl Aicher in that o graphic design. My own work and that of my group would have been unthinkable without the way paved by them.
"Alessandro Mendini interviews Dieter Rams" Domus 649, April 1984 (via reprint of 19 May 2012)
My heart belongs to the details. I actually always found them to be more important than the big picture. Nothing works without details. They are everything, the baseline of quality.
Design Icons: 10 principles for Good Design by Dieter Rams, International Forum Design (May 2026)
Ten Principles for Good design
Rams "10 Principles" as summarized by the Design Museum:
Good design is innovative
Good design makes a product useful
Good design is aesthetic
Good design makes a product understandable
Good design is unobtrusive
Good design is honest
Good design is long-lasting
Good design is thorough down to the last detail
Good design is environmentally-friendly
Good design is as little design as possible
What is "Good" Design? A quick look at Dieter Rams' Ten Principles. The Design Museum, London
Dieter Rams and the 10 principles for a good design Domus Magazine (15 March 2023)
Quotes about Rams
In the late 1970s, Dieter Rams was becoming increasingly interested in the world of things that surrounded him – "an impenetrable confusion of forms, colours and noises." As a designer, Rams was aware that he played an important role in the world he was helping create, he asked himself an important question: is my design good design?
What is "Good" Design? A quick look at Dieter Rams' Ten Principles. The Design Museum, London
External links
Category:Living people
Category:Designers
Category:People from Germany
Category:1932 births