Das gewöhnliche Design

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„Das gewöhnliche Design“ is a hidden classic in German design history, akin to a B-side hit from the vinyl era. In 1976, a group of students and young professors at the University of Applied Sciences in Darmstadt challenged conventional perceptions of design objects. Frustrated by the disparity between their aspirations as comprehensive designers and the reality of becoming mere product stylists, they sought a new understanding of good design. Led by Friedrich Friedl and Gerd Ohlhauser, the group collected everyday items like bottle openers and bus timetables, exhibiting them under the title „The ordinary Design“. This show, featuring only "boring" commodities, unexpectedly garnered national attention and sparked discussions in the design press. The young designers humorously employed traditional exhibition techniques, using velvet-covered pedestals typically reserved for high art, which provoked and irritated the audience. The absence of heroic or aesthetically refined qualities in the exhibits seemed to mock design education. The Rhenish Open-Air and Regional Museum Kommern purchased the exhibits, repeated the show, and published a catalog with contributions from notable figures. Although this catalog has become rare, a newly edited facsimile by Frank Philippin and Florian Walzel aims to reintroduce this work to a broader audience, prompting reflection on the significance of the ordinary in design amidst an era focused on no