Design : Germany

Design has a long tradition in Germany. At the beginning of the 20th century, Peter Behrens (1868-1940) designed products, posters and buildings for the electrical firm AEG. In 1907 the German Labor League was founded for the purpose of promoting the “enrichment of working life through the combined influence of art, industry and the craft trades”. The Bauhaus founded by Walter Gropius (1883-1969) in 1919, which existed from 1919 to 1933, became vvorld famous. The same is true of the Ulm College of Design, which was founded in 1953 by Inge Scholl, Otl Aicher (1922-1991) and Max Bill (1908-1994). While it initially followed in the footsteps of the Bauhaus, it soon pursued concepts of its own and set internationally acknowledged standards for design during the 15 years of its existence.

It strongly influenced many prominent designers. Otl Aicher, for instance, developed the design of Lufthansa German Airlines, the “Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF)” television network and the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich. Alexander Neumeister designed the Intercity-Express (ICE) and the Transrapid magnetic levita-tion train; Hans Gugelot (1920-1965) designed the Hamburg elevated train (together with Herbert Lin- dinger) as well as phonograph equipment and electric razors for the firm Braun.

For many years the name “Braun” was closely linked - especially abroad - with the concept of “German design”, which combines functionality with complexity and technology. The Braun design was largely defined by Dieter Rams. Other German firms set styles with their products as well: Wilkhahn in Bad Munder and Vitra in Weil on the Rhine for furniture, Lamy for writing implements, and Erco for lamps.

The Design Council established in 1953 pursuant to a resolution of the German Bundestag informs and advises trade and industry, cultural institutions and the public at large about design-related issues. One focus of its work is the presentation of German designs abroad. On behalf of the Federal Minister of Economics it awards a federal prize for product design. There are also a number of design institutions in the federal states. The most prominent ones are the International Design Center (IDZ) in Berlin, the Stuttgart “designcenter” and the North Rhine-Westphalia Design Center in Essen. The interests of designers vis-a-vis the political sector and the public are represented by the German Design Forum. 1997 marked the beginning of a “Design Initiative of German Business and Industry”, which is supported by the national organizations of German business and industry, the Federal Ministry of Economics, the design institutions and the associations of designers.
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