Braun Audio wall mounted audio system designed by Dieter Rams
About the Item
- Creator:Braun (Maker),Dieter Rams (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 67 in (170.18 cm)Width: 25 in (63.5 cm)Depth: 15 in (38.1 cm)
- Style:Industrial (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1960's/70's
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Los Angeles, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU7074239669122
Dieter Rams
German industrial designer Dieter Rams is revered for the pared-down, intuitive electronics and consumer goods he created for Braun — where he worked from 1955 to 1997, most of that time as chief design officer — and his timeless furniture for Vitsœ, a company with which he continues to collaborate today.
Less well known are Rams’s longstanding focus on sustainability and uneasy relationship with contemporary technology, even as Silicon Valley designers like Apple’s Jonathan Ive follow in his rational footsteps.
During Germany’s postwar rebuilding period, Rams and his team of designers at Braun, inspired by the Bauhaus and the Ulm School of Design, focused on extreme simplicity and usability while conceiving products with a modern, forward-looking appearance.
Among Rams’s most iconic designs is the SK 4 phonograph and radio, created in 1956, which had a compact white metal case topped by a revolutionary-at-the-time transparent Plexiglas lid that revealed simple gray controls inside (it was nicknamed Snow White’s Coffin). But it is the T3 portable radio, from 1958, that gets design aficionados most excited today: A white rectangular box with a perforated square for the speaker and a circular-dial control, it bears an unmistakable resemblance to Apple’s original iPod. (Many people also note that the iPhone’s calculator app looks remarkably similar to the Braun ET 66 calculator, with its circular color-coded buttons.)
In the late 1970s, Rams laid out his widely studied 10 principles for good design: It is innovative, makes a product useful, is aesthetic, makes a product understandable, is unobtrusive, is honest, is long lasting, is thorough down to the last detail, is environmentally friendly and is as little design as possible.
One of Rams’s principles that hasn’t translated to our contemporary era is his emphasis on longevity. “The time of thoughtless design and thoughtless consumption is over,” he said in 1976, stressing the need to conserve natural resources — even as he was busy designing plastic products.
Rams has also expressed reservations about how electronics have evolved in recent decades from tools for improving life to time-sucking obsessions. “Every time he crosses a street and sees people glued to their phones, he just can’t conceive of how we got to this point,” says filmmaker Gary Hustwit, whose feature-length documentary on Rams debuted in 2018. “I think he’s a little bit saddened by all this work they did in the fifties and sixties, which had a very idealistic point of view, being a stepping stone to where we are now, and the current lust for technology.”
If digital devices sometimes seem to be making life more complicated, Rams’s precept remains the same as always: “Back to purity, back to simplicity.”
Find vintage Dieter Rams furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Los Angeles, CA
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- Braun Audio 300 Record Player and L61 floor speaker designed by Dieter RamsBy Braun, Dieter RamsLocated in Los Angeles, CABraun Audio 300 and rare L61 floor speaker designed by Dieter Rams, 1960's/70's. Equip with AM/FM radio and record player. Fully functional and has been serviced by a technician.Category
Late 20th Century German Industrial Musical Instruments
MaterialsMetal
- 1970’s Monumental Think Big CrayonsLocated in Los Angeles, CAVery rare set of 1970's Monumental Crayola Crayons by Think Big. Set of 6. Heavy plastic frame with thick paper label. Comes with original tags and paperwork. Excellent vintage condi...Category
Vintage 1970s American Models and Miniatures
MaterialsPlastic, Paper
- Space Age Yellow Chapter One Desk by Broyhill Premier, 1970'sBy BroyhillLocated in Los Angeles, CASpace Age Yellow Chapter One desk by Broyhill Premier, 1970's. In good vintage condition.Category
Vintage 1970s American Space Age Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsMetal
- Yellow Orix Desk by Nani Prina & Vittorio Parigi for Molteni, 1970'sBy Molteni & C, Vittorio Parigi and Nani PrinaLocated in Los Angeles, CARare tangerine yellow Orix Desk by Nani Prina & Vittorio Parigi for Molteni, 1970's. Molded out of ABS plastic. No chips or cracks. Lamp in good working condition.Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Space Age Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsMetal, Chrome
- Anfibio Three Seat Sofa Bed by Alessandro Becchi for Giovannetti, 1972By Alessandro Becchi, GiovannettiLocated in Los Angeles, CAAnfibio foldable sofa bed designed by Allesandro Becchi for Giovannetti, 1970’s. In good vintage condition. No major defects.Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Daybeds
MaterialsSheepskin, Faux Leather, Foam
- Peter Shire "Olympic Torch" Floor Lamp, 1980'sBy Peter Shire, Memphis MilanoLocated in Los Angeles, CAMemphis Milano "Olympic Torch" lamp created for the Los Angeles Olympic village by Peter Shire, 1984. In excellent vintage condition.Category
Vintage 1980s American Floor Lamps
MaterialsMetal, Aluminum, Steel
- Mid 20th Century Modern Table lighter by Dieter Rams for BraunBy Braun, Dieter RamsLocated in Brugge, BE1968-1970 Germany Brushed metal 8.5cm high, 5.5cm diameter Dieter Rams, born in 1932, is a renowned German industrial designer closely associated with Braun, Vitsœ, and the funct...Category
Mid-20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Tobacco Accessories
MaterialsMetal
- Hans Gugelot designed radio for Braun, 1955By Braun, Hans GugelotLocated in Los Angeles, CARadio "Super" G11 by Swiss designer Hans Gugelot for Braun in 1955. Braun is of course well known for their iconic, Dieter Rams designed, audio equipment. This piece is not tested, w...Category
Vintage 1950s German Mid-Century Modern Musical Instruments
MaterialsPlastic, Wood
- Dieter Rams The Complete WorksLocated in New York, NYThe ultimate reference on one of the most influential product designers of all time For more than sixty years Dieter Rams has defined the look, feel, and function of some of the w...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Books
MaterialsPaper
- LECSON AP1 Power Amplifier and AC1 Pre-Amp, hi-fi quad 33/303 braun dieter ramsBy Donald JuddLocated in London, GBLecson AP1 Power Amplifier and AC1 Pre-Amplifier Designed 1972 by Allen Boothroyd, this design won the 1974 Design Council Award. Good condition, fully working and ready to enjoy -...Category
Vintage 1980s British Minimalist Musical Instruments
MaterialsMetal
- Pair Modernist Walnut Audio Speakers by Bozak, Frank Lloyd Wright DesignBy Alex BozLocated in Buffalo, NYPair large modernist walnut audio speakers by Bozak, stunning design, reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wright Design, amazing original condition, tested and wo...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Musical Instruments
MaterialsGrasscloth, Walnut
- Wall mounted bellLocated in London, GBAn early 20th century wall mounted bell, with brass bracket. Projection from wall: 15 inches. Original iron ball clapper. The bell has a nice rin...Category
Early 20th Century English Musical Instruments
MaterialsBrass