Class values: the Ulm School's singular approach to product design
A pioneering approach to product design cultivated in southern Germany 60 years ago is still having an impact today. The goal of Hochschule für Gestaltung Ulm (HfG) – the Ulm School of Design – was to train designers for a new mass culture. 'From the coffee cup to the housing estate,' as Max Bill put it.
Along with his co-founders Inge Scholl and Otl Aicher, Bill – who designed the school building – championed an interdisciplinary and systematic approach to design education. The reputation of the Ulm Model quickly spread, and this way of teaching has since become universal.
Space units used as student accommodation at the Ulm School, designed by Herbert Ohl and Bernd Meurer, 1961.
As the rector Tomás Maldonado said: 'The HfG is not just a school where you are educated in a special subject; the HfG is more like a community whose members share the same intentions: bestowing structure and stability upon the world around us.'
From 1953 to 1968, the school’s progressiveness was so well-respected that its students were commissioned by two of the country’s major businesses. Braun and Lufthansa briefed undergraduates to create radical designs. Some of this modernist output is now on show in London’s Spitalfields at the Raven Row contemporary art gallery, which was itself designed by 6a Architects.
'The Ulm Model' – as the exhibition is also titled – has been designed by London practice David Kohn Architects, and features an eclectic mix of the students’ drawings, models and products including radiographs, weighing machines, traffic lights, petrol cans, bed frames and kitchenware.
Curated by Peter Kapos, lecturer at Camberwell College of Arts and director of Das Programm, a website selling classic Braun products, this is the first, overdue UK showing of the Ulm School’s iconic output.
INFORMATION
’The Ulm Model’ is on view until 18 December. For more information, visit the Raven Row website
ADDRESS
56 Artillery Ln
London E1 7LS
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
-
Fernanda Dovigi creates a plush Aspen mountain chalet
Fernanda Dovigi’s revamped Aspen mountain chalet brings contemporary art and design to après-ski
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
Space Un celebrates contemporary African art, community and connection in Japan
Space Un, a new art venue by Edna Dumas, dedicated to contemporary African art, opens in Tokyo, Japan
By Nana Ama Owusu-Ansah Published
-
Get to know Issey Miyake’s innovative A-POC ABLE line as it arrives in the UK
As A-POC ABLE Issey Miyake launches in London this week, designer Yoshiyuki Miyamae gives Wallpaper* the lowdown on the experimental Issey Miyake offshoot
By Jack Moss Published
-
‘R for Repair’ at London Design Festival displays broken objects, re-formed
In the second half of a two-part exhibition and as part of London Design Festival 2022, ‘R for Repair’ at the V&A displays broken objects, re-formed
By Martha Elliott Last updated
-
‘Finding quality through the act of making’: Pearson Lloyd celebrates 25 years of design
Pearson Lloyd’s show ‘Change Making’ reflects on past designs from its archives, showcasing the influences on and evolution of the studio, from furniture design to the NHS
By Martha Elliott Last updated
-
Tom Dixon marks his studio's 20 years with a show of design experiments
Mushroom, cork, steel coral and more: Tom Dixon showcases an overview of his design experiments as he celebrates his practice's 20 years
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Porro unveils new London showroom at Coal Office
London Design Festival 2022: industrial architecture meets pure geometries in the new Porro showroom, taking over a space within Tom Dixon’s Coal Office to showcase the brand’s systems and furniture
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Vitra unveils new London home in the Tramshed, Shoreditch
London Design Festival 2022: after a year-long renovation, Vitra opens the door to its new showroom in the heart of Shoreditch
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Mudlarking beside the River Thames inspires The New Craftsmen’s makers
London Design Festival 2022: The New Craftsmen’s new collection, ‘Claylarks’, features work from a group of creatives inspired by a River Thames mudlarking expedition
By Mary Cleary Last updated
-
One tree, ten designers: SCP presents The One Tree Project at London Design Festival
London Design Festival 2022: SCP enlisted ten British designers to create furniture and objects from a felled ash tree from founder Sheridan Coakley's Hampshire garden
By Francesca Perry Last updated
-
London Design Medals 2022
London Design Medals 2022 are awarded to costume designer Sandy Powell, architect Indy Johar, researcher Joycelyn Longdon and photographer Sir Don McCullin
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated