Everyday design: OrasAugust 12th, 2009 Designer legend Jorma Vennola, who recently retired from ED-Design, talked about Oras faucet design in the Arjen design (Everyday design) series broadcast by Radio Suomi on August 8th 2009.  The Scandinavian, minimalistic design language used in faucets is largely dictated by practical reasons. "In order to be easily cleanable and hygienic, faucets cannot have too many curves, holes or gaps. -- If a faucet looks complicated, it may be difficult for the user to grasp how it is supposed to be used."
Vennola fondly remembers the shifting winds in faucet design in the past decades. "In the eighties, there was a demand to have faucets in many different colours, but the trend did not live long. In practise, consumers still wanted their faucets in hard, easily cleanable chrome. And chrome still is the best material for a product that is in constant contact with water and strong cleaning agents." On the other hand, some radical changes can sustain: "It was quite a learning process when single-lever faucets were introduced. Now all of us use them; thirty years ago they were considered rather peculiar."
The whole story is available online at YLE Areena (in Finnish). | 
