Stories

Torsten Valeur has always been fascinated by designing elegant technological products. Being adhered to the four design principles “intuitive, enduring, empathic and generous”, he thrives for transforming technology into products that are aesthetic, uncomplicated to use and can evoke an enduring magic pleasure as well as a lasting appeal to keep them. Moreover, the products should have strong personalities, can yet easily blend in various home interiors. – All these seem to be familiar Scandinavian design features. However, Torsten Valeur concludes his own design philosophy not as the common Scandinavian Minimalism, but as “Essentialism”. Download the interview to get the full picture.

A central issue, Valeur explains, is that many people find the flat expanse of screens alienating and dominating, particularly in a domestic space. “Even going back to the time when I was born, people were saying they didn’t want this piece of alien technology in the living room; this picture tube like a Big Brother eye watching you. What do you do with that?” He’s not wrong. “You’ve got this issue,” Valeur summarises, “of who on earth wants a big, black piece of glass in the living room? You only accept it because it gives you something: a live picture.” In his own work for Bang & Olufsen, Valeur has produced a number of televisions that artfully break up the screen with elements including sound bars and speakers, executed in materials such as wood and milled aluminium. “It’s all about finding what else we can do to make it mentally disappear when it’s off,” says Valeur.