History & Practice: Hochschule Für Gestaltung (HfG) Biography - Dieter Rams

The Hochschule Für Gestaltung (HfG). or Ulm school of design was founded in in the city of Ulm, Germany. HfG was created by Inge Aicher-Scholl, Olt Aicher, and Max Bill. It opened in 1953 and closed in 1968​.
The Ulm school of design mirrored the Bauhaus' approach to artistic creation: integrating art & design with advances in contemporary technology. However, HfG took this further than the Bauhaus, by exploring Art's relationship with contemporary thought and how the two interact and affect each other.

Dieter Rams was a designer who is known for his functional and simplistic designs in the world of consumer products, and furniture.
​Dieter Rams was born in 1932 in Wiebaden, Germany. Rams pursued architecture and interior design at Wiebaden's school of Art in 1947.
In 1953 Rams successfully completed his studies at Wiebaden's school of Art. Fresh from his studies, Rams was hired by Otto Apel, an architect in Frankfurt.
In 1955 Rams was hired by Braun, a consumer products company based in Kronberg.
Rams was promoted to chief officer of design at Braun in 1961, a job which he kept until 1995.

Dieter Rams Portrait, 2010 (Age 78)

Rams was involved in the HfG by way of a design collaboration effort with Braun and the HfG. This cooperation was engaged in with the hopes to create unique product designs to help Braun stand out in the market. Rams' role in this was spearheading the principles of design to create a consistent, recognisable Braun Style which all products made by the company should adhere to.

Dieter Rams' involvement with the HfG by way of a consumer product company affirms the HfG's founding principles of Art & Design integrating into contemporary technology and development of the modern way of life.
The products Rams would go on to make with the HfG would be everyday products available, and distributed to everyday households, thus influencing the zeitgeist on a grand scale.

The neutrality of Rams' designs, the muted colours, the organised forms, and simple shapes allow them to slot into the background of most interior spaces which enables people to impose their own décor style upon these designs should they wish, adding personality to the impersonal designs.
This clean integration adds a timeless quality to these designs, thereby having few interior environments where they would stand out negatively, which widens their potential appeal.

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