The Power of Good Design
Good design | About us | Vitsœ


		
				Here at Vitsœ we stand for the inordinate power of good design in everything we do: designing thoughtfully, responsibly and intelligently for our company, our furniture and the many people who share a profound interest in all of our tomorrows.

For over 65 years, Vitsœ has worked continuously with Dieter Rams. He still improves his designs to this day and is often cited by a new generation as a key influence on their work that is shaping the 21st century.

			

		
				“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.”
				
			

		
			
				Ten principles for good design
			
			
				Back in the late 1970s, Dieter Rams was becoming increasingly concerned by the state of the world around him: “An impenetrable confusion of forms, colours and noises.”

Aware that he was a significant contributor to that world, he asked himself an important question: is my design good design?

His answer is expressed in his ten principles for good design.

			
			
				
				
					Vitsœ’s designer, Dieter Rams. Photograph by Abisag Tüllmann
					
				
			
		

		
			
			
				Good design is innovative
				The possibilities for innovation are not, by any means, exhausted. Technological development is always offering new opportunities for innovative design. But innovative design always develops in tandem with innovative technology, and can never be an end in itself.

				
			
			
				
				TP 1 radio/phono combination, 1959, by Dieter Rams for Braun
			
		

		
			2
			
				Good design makes a product useful
				A product is bought to be used. It has to satisfy certain criteria, not only functional, but also psychological and aesthetic. Good design emphasises the usefulness of a product whilst disregarding anything that could possibly detract from it.

				
			
			
				
				MPZ 21 multipress citrus juicer, 1972, by Dieter Rams and Jürgen Greubel for Braun
			
		

		
			3
			
				Good design is aesthetic
				The aesthetic quality of a product is integral to its usefulness because products we use every day affect our person and our well-being. But only well-executed objects can be beautiful.

				
			
			
				
				RT 20 tischsuper radio, 1961, by Dieter Rams for Braun
			
		

		
			4
			
				Good design makes a product understandable
				It clarifies the product’s structure. Better still, it can make the product talk. At best, it is self-explanatory.

				
			
			
				
				T 1000 world receiver, 1963, by Dieter Rams for Braun
			
		

		
			5
			
				Good design is unobtrusive
				Products fulfilling a purpose are like tools. They are neither decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should therefore be both neutral and restrained, to leave room for the user’s self-expression.

				
			
			
				
				Cylindric T 2 lighter, 1968, by Dieter Rams for Braun
			
		

		
			6
			
				Good design is honest
				It does not make a product more innovative, powerful or valuable than it really is. It does not attempt to manipulate the consumer with promises that cannot be kept.

				
			
			
				
				L 450 flat loudspeaker, TG 60 reel-to-reel tape recorder and TS 45 control unit, 1962-64, by Dieter Rams for Braun
			
		

		
			7
			
				Good design is long-lasting
				It avoids being fashionable and therefore never appears antiquated. Unlike fashionable design, it lasts many years – even in today’s throwaway society.

				
			
			
				
				620 Chair Programme, 1962, by Dieter Rams for Vitsœ
			
		

		
			8
			
				Good design is thorough down to the last detail
				Nothing must be arbitrary or left to chance. Care and accuracy in the design process show respect towards the user.

				
			
			
				
				ET 66 calculator, 1987, by Dietrich Lubs for Braun
			
		

		
			9
			
				Good design is environmentally-friendly
				Design makes an important contribution to the preservation of the environment. It conserves resources and minimises physical and visual pollution throughout the lifecycle of the product.

				
			
			
				
				606 Universal Shelving System, 1960, by Dieter Rams for Vitsœ
			
		

		
			
			
				Good design is as little design as possible
				Less, but better – because it concentrates on the essential aspects, and the products are not burdened with non-essentials.

Back to purity, back to simplicity.

				
			
			
				
				L 2 speaker, 1958, by Dieter Rams for Braun
			
		

		
				These principles can be shared accurately and fairly under the Creative Commons CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence.
				
						
					
				
			

		

		

		

	