Dieter Rams is my absolute favorite designer.
He has influenced the world like no other. Apple has strongly based its design and form language on his.1https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/dieter-rams-film-exhibition-style-intl/index.html The growing minimalism movement is again based on his principles and his contribution to sustainability still resonates today.
And I too have become a Rams disciple.
The following list of quotes and sayings draws on a wide variety of sources and summarizes his philosophy and design language in the best possible way.
The design should make the product speak.
Dieter Rams
Good design is innovative. Good design must be useful. Good design is aesthetic design. Good design makes a product understandable. Good design is honest. Good design is unobtrusive. Good design is durable. Good design is coherent down to the last detail. Good design is environmentally friendly. And last but not least, good design is as little design as possible.
Dieter Rams
Less, but better.
Dieter Rams
Indifference to people and the reality in which they live is actually the only true deadly sin in design.
Dieter Rams
Question everything that is generally taken for granted.
Dieter Rams
The composition of these rooms represents the basic intention behind my design: simplicity, essentiality and openness.
Dieter Rams
Design should not dominate things, should not dominate people. It should help people. That is its role.
Dieter Rams
One of the most significant design principles is to omit the unimportant in order to emphasize the important.
Dieter Rams
Great design makes something memorable and meaningful.
Dieter Rams
You cannot understand good design if you do not understand people; design is made for people.
Dieter Rams
As designers, we have a great responsibility.
Dieter Rams
Innovations arise from unsolved problems.
Dieter Rams
Design should make a product easier to use, not more difficult.
Dieter Rams
I believe that future generations will shudder at the thoughtlessness with which we clutter up our homes, our cities and our countryside with all kinds of junk.
Dieter Rams
A good design tells a story.
Dieter Rams
Honesty is the foundation of good design.
Dieter Rams
Complexity is easy; simplicity is hard.
Dieter Rams
Design doesn’t have to be complicated; often the simplest solution is the best.
Dieter Rams
Design is always first and foremost mental work.
Dieter Rams
Good design respects the user.
Dieter Rams
Design is not about what you see, but how it works.
Dieter Rams
The best design is often invisible.
Dieter Rams
Form follows function.
Dieter Rams
The aesthetics of the empty space with the clear, precise arrangement of floor, walls and ceiling, with the careful design of materials and structures, is much more differentiated than the European aesthetics of abundance, decoration and loud forms.
Dieter Rams
In a world that is filling up alarmingly fast, that is destructively loud and confusing in many ways, design has the task for me of being quiet, of contributing to a calm that allows people to find themselves.
Dieter Rams
The future of design is simplification.
Dieter Rams
Design is a bridge between product and user.
Dieter Rams
A designer knows that he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing to add, but when there is nothing to take away.
Dieter Rams
Good design requires discipline.
Dieter Rams
The aesthetics of a product are an integral part of its usability.
Dieter Rams
The true beauty of a product lies in its function.
Dieter Rams
If you want to delve deeper into the world of Dieter Rams’ thoughts, I recommend the book: Less and More: The Design Ethos of Dieter Rams.2https://www.vitsoe.com/de/voice/zuhause-des-guten-designs
Wherever possible, I try to incorporate his principles into my own work and life. Be it the minimalist lifestyle, my relationship to space and order, the Workflowy notes app – which I use to structure my life – but also the style of clothing I choose.
You could say that Dieter Ram’s philosophies have become part of my everyday life. And I am very grateful to him for this positive influence.
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