March 7th, 2007

The Shaker Design Philosophy

The furniture-making Shakers have a great design philosophy

“Don’t make something unless it is both necessary and useful; but if it is both necessary and useful, don’t hesitate to make it beautiful.”

The Shaker design philosophy is one of prioritization: their main priority is to be necessary and useful. Then, once that has been achieved, make something beautiful. To me this is a great way to explain design, without sacrificing beauty or expression of the designer. Many times I’ve got in trouble when trying to articulate this sentiment, such as my recent post on 5 Principles to Design By, in which I suggest that “Design is not Art”. I tell myself that design is not art so I can focus on the idea that design should be functional above all else, and once that is achieved the designer can imbue it with other properties.

The Shaker philosophy has led to an amazing array of designs. The Shakers invented, among other things, the circular saw, the washing machine, and the flat broom. They are also well-known for their simple, durable furniture. My wife and I have longed to buy Shaker furniture to fill our house, but because it is always made by hand and with solid wood it is relatively expensive. One nice example is the ladder-back chair, a design which we take for granted nowadays. An interesting version of this design is the Shaker tilting chair, with ball-and-socket joints on its rear legs so one can lean back in it without breaking the chair legs.

Ward Cunningham, inventor of the wiki, has a page dedicated to Shaker philosophy, which should come as no surprise given the simple utility of the software.

The Shakers themselves were an interesting lot, an extremely religious group started in Manchester, England in 1700s. They moved (9 of them) to the Watervliet area in New York in 1770s. The Shakers are very religious, and one of their strict beliefs hinders their growth as a community. That belief is in celibacy, or simply not having sex. Because of this their numbers have never been large and the only way that a Shaker community can form or survive is by conversion. By most accounts, the only remaining community of Shakers in the world is in Sabbathday Lake, Maine.

Even so, their philosophy lives on in countless designs refined over the years.

Comments ( 18 Responses so far )

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1. Shimon on March 8th, 2007 (Comment) #

Don’t make something unless it is both necessary and useful; but if it is both necessary and useful, don’t hesitate to make it beautiful.

Thank you for this quote, i’ll take it on a note!

2. Joe Duck on March 11th, 2007 (Comment) #

Great post Josh, though I’m not sure this advice holds up well in the wild and freewheeling online world where design *and even success* seem to be governed more by superficiality, whimsy, and questionable content.

3. Bob Sutton on March 14th, 2007 (Comment) #

You can say that again! Is it going too far to acknowledge that a cardinal principle of Shaker design is humility? Or how that virtue seems sorely missing in the “web-designer-as-rock-star” phenomenon? I marvel at all the talented folk who found in your “Five Principles to Design By” an affront to their aspirations as artistes rather than carefully chosen words about how serving necessity and usefulness enobles Design.

Looking ahead to a time when styling CSS is no more profound than child’s play, will the artists still outnumber the Shakers?

4. Tristan on March 14th, 2007 (Comment) #

I like that quote a lot. If you add that to your 5 principles, you may disregard my comment on that post! Thanks for this, it’s a good one to remember.

5. 激情成人 on March 15th, 2007 (Comment) #

Very nice site. I have enjoyed reading it. Best regards TooMM

6. Web Design Wales on March 19th, 2007 (Comment) #

Thanks for the pointer, I’m looking forward to reading it shortly

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8. Apple TV Converter Info on March 26th, 2007 (Comment) #

Thanks for this information.
Thanks for all the kind words of support!

9. Outsource Web Design on April 2nd, 2007 (Comment) #

The article that has been given is quite informative . Excellent contribution.kind regards.

10. custom real estate web design on April 11th, 2007 (Comment) #

very information article. thanks.

11. Michael M on May 12th, 2007 (Comment) #

Thanks for information here, I think gaining understanding for this subject is really important. The more we know the better we deal in different type of situations that we come across. Here is another related page that may be of interest to some, it’s all about shaker furniture, here it is http://www.woodcraft-furniture-magazine.com/Shaker-Furniture.php

12. Designer Furniture on June 12th, 2007 (Comment) #

I think it is essential for the designer furniture to be uniqe and beautiful, but at the same time practical and useful.

13. flyer on July 19th, 2007 (Comment) #

The execellente design principles.

I think for being changed nevertheless that the principles as required can, for example if man a flyer Design make can man naturally its principles to use however those of the customer to come to it or have rather begin or?

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14. lilian on September 16th, 2007 (Comment) #

thanks for this article, it helped me with my research on shaker design history.
nb. does anyone know whether they used nails etc?

15. web 2.0 blog on March 21st, 2008 (Comment) #

The same applies to website design which is why I try to prioritize usability over aesthetics.

16. oyun indir on May 11th, 2008 (Comment) #

The Shaker Design Philosophy

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