Minimalism is Getting Absurd: Updating Dieter Rams' 10 Principles

Download Shapr3D for iPad, macOS, & Windows: www.shapr3d.com/download?utm_source=social&utm_med… Get 10% off with code "DesignTheory10" . EDIT: I'm getting a lot of comments that the Porsche is actually quite minimal compared to other sports cars. I agree to an extent, and even thought about mentioning this as I was making the video. However, the bigger point is that even the most "minimal" sports car (a Porsche) is LOADED with design elements intended to evoke a strong emotional response. In this sense, it is far from the "less but better" ethos.

Im so glad you're talking about aesthetic minimalism getting in the way of functional minimalism. I am getting increasingly annoyed with technology increasingly getting rid of buttons in favour of prettier screens and touchpads at the expense of useability. Cars are probably the worst example of this where touchscreen interfaces are making it impossible to adjust entertainment and climate controls without looking away from the road, making them inherently more dangerous.

Function over form leads to minimalism. But trying to ACHIEVE minimalism for aesthetic alone is just slipping into form over function again. It's one of the things that drives me crazy about modern design.

I’m also tired of design being used as an excuse to prevent repair and upgradability. Too many companies now expect people to just buy something new instead of allowing the usable lifespan of a product to be increased with engineering and design choices that are anti consumer.  Everything behind a subscription is a worrying trend and it’s influencing the design of products and systems negatively.

The irony about the environmentally friendly rule is that the most minimalist companies are also the ones that want us to throw away our old products and replace them as fast as possible.

I hate that minimalism has become something that causes people to create beige rooms for babies who need a lot of color and visual stimulation for proper brain development. The overuse of minimalism purely for the look is legitimately going to harm people.

“Good design communicates what is necessary.” This is perfect. It inherently includes the purpose of refinement rather than forcing refinement beyond the intended purpose. Well played, sir, well played

About bonsai, well, that's actually the opposite. Wiring is used to actually bend the tree to your will and you can actually bend each branch as you want. It just takes more time and effort. The size of the leafs also can vary according to the amount of nutrient you give your tree. That being said, I agree with you tho. Some parts of a design can be "random". I think it can make it flow more organically.

It's not dishonest to design glasses to draw attention in specific ways. The design doesnt misrepresent anything about the sunglasses' functionality. The "honest" design principle is about not using design to mislead the consumer. Extra buttons that do nothing, plastic made to look like more durable metal, and fake pockets are all examples of design features that mislead the consumer in a dishonest way.

The 911 is a great example of what Dieter was arguing for in car design - relative consistency compared to, as he said, "change every two years."

I know it isn't the main point of the video, but I'm so fascinated by the Gen Z push toward maximalism, because I'm totally in that camp. My current landlord allowed me to paint the house when I moved in, so I painted my bedroom in greens and yellows to match the scheme I saw in a historic 1840s house. It was way more effort than necessary, but it makes me feel so much more comfortable and natural than all-white everything would. Even the idea of an "accent wall" in a solid color feels too clinical now. I also bought an antique silver-plated utensil set for $30 and polished it all and use it as my everyday utensils. Why? Because it feels sooo good in this sterile modern reality we live in. The old wooden Colonial-revival coffee table I got at the thrift store is so much more interesting and emotionally comforting to me than an IKEA table... you get the idea.

My parents had a kitchen kitchen timer with up to 3 independently programmable timers with only 3 buttons?! It was impossible for anyone but my dad to set up a simple 2 minute timer for tea. They eventually got rid of it in favour of a old spring loaded mechanically kitchen timer . . .

As a layman, I can appreciate all sorts of design from modern minimalist to neo gothic, they all have a unique soul. As a amateur wood worker I personally love art deco and Scandinavian minimalism. I do love the fact you brought up about the dangers of infinite grow and chasing it. It’s killing us, people are not prepared to here this.

The folding knife industry is a great showcase for how differently designers can try to balance form and function

This video is great. As a designer in the hand and power tools sector, styling is critically important. Minimalist tools are gimmicks that don’t resonate because they don’t emotionally resonate the same way styled tools do. They feel pedantic and erudite, and lack the sense of durability communicated by styling. In this way, I think that Rams’ principles are self-contradictory: design cannot communicate effectively with the customer while simultaneously trying to keep its mouth shut.

As an older person who has thought about many of the things you discuss in this video for decades it’s refreshing and inspiring that a younger person such as yourself has this wisdom to apply.

I’ve always had issues with the last rule. “Only well-executed objects (the ones following these rules) can be beautiful”. This establishes form follows function and minimalism as the only yardstick for beauty. I also don’t like the word “aesthetic”, it’s cold and implies a beauty imposed by the designer rather than one found in the eye of the beholder. The explanation of this rule reinforces that, and it is something often reiterated by modern architects: you have to understand the design of the building to see its beauty. NO! If appreciation requires understanding, it’s small wonder there is so much ugliness around us. I say: “Good design is beautiful”. That word evokes emotion, something thoroughly lacking from modern design. It’s a subjective term of course, and that is fine, you’re not going to please everyone. But it’s fine to embellish your design with flourishes or ornaments that have no function whatsoever… except to appeal to the beholder’s sense of beauty. Let’s bring some joy back in our lives, by creating beauty for its own sake.

I just understood what Lis Engel said there 22:50 - it just made so much sense. I'm gonna remember this

Ever since I started crocheting, I got a different feeling for how things are made besides making them. And it's so interesting and satisfying. I've also learned to appreciate little decorative details more. Like they used to have; but they were still so well integrated into the function, sturdy. I would like to go there again, where things are not simply sleek, sort of impersonal, but where they are warm and perhaps whimsical, beautiful. I would also like artisan work to be more widespread again. Electrical devices are often very complicated and perhaps better made in a factory, but chairs? Virtually anyone can probably learn how to make one. I want designers to be artisans at the same time and not just making blue prints for a factory. We'd have more variations again too. I realize it will always be a mixture, but what I think is needed is putting more soul, more personality into things again, having them be artifacts rather than products, to value them more and make them as beautiful, long-lasting and sturdy as possible besides functional and pleasant to use.

As a person getting into design, this is the video i needed. Dieter rams got me intrigued with design, but reading his works, i often wondered if his principles still applied today and if its really the end all be all of design. Im glad you made this, cause it validates and inspires me to really go all in with my own vision even though i am a novice! Thank you!