Dieter Rams: 10 Principles of Good Design
This list has probably been touted more than enough on the Internet and Design circles. I recite Deiter Rams 10 Principles of Good Design on the small, off chance that you haven't already come across them before. Even if you are familiar, it is always necessary to refamiliarise yourself from time to time.
These are basic, and all encompassing, and can be applied to practically anything that requires meaningful thought and planning. Here we go:
01 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.
02 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 while disregarding anything that could possibly detract from it.
03 GOOD DESIGN IS AESTHETIC
The aesthetic quality of a product is integral to its usefulness because products are used every day and have an effect on people and their well-being. Pnlu well-executed objects can be beautiful.
04 GOOD DESIGN MAKES A PRODUCT UNDERSTANDABLE
It clarifies the product's structure. Better still, it can make the product clearly express its function by making use of the user's intuition. At best, it is self-explanatory.
05 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.
06 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.
07 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.
08 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 consumer.
09 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 life-cycle of the product.
10 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.
BONUS: Here is a take away poster for you.
Friends! I got some photos (and a vlog) for you from a weeked trip away to Mt Fuji. We head to Mt Fuji for the weekend to chase some Autumn colours (with Fooj in the back obviously). If you have never been to Mt Fuji, be warned that depending on the time of year, it might not always be visible. It is kind of crazy thinking about how huge the mountain is and how it can just hide from you so easily in the clouds. I was once told by a tour guide that Mt Fuji is female because she likes to hide from you and will only appear if you are nice. Click through for more word and some photos to match.