The Art of Impossible: The Bang & Olufsen Design Story
About
Bang & Olufsen has occupied unusual territory in consumer electronics since their founding in 1925, producing audio and video equipment that prioritizes visual presence alongside sonic performance. This Thames & Hudson volume documents that philosophy through nearly a century of product development, industrial design evolution, and the corporate culture that enabled both.
The book presents equipment chronologically, revealing how design language developed in response to technological advancement, manufacturing capability, and shifting domestic aesthetics. Early radios gave way to integrated systems, then to speakers conceived as sculptural objects worthy of prominent placement rather than concealment. Each era receives contextual framing that explains not just what designers created but why those choices made sense within their moment.
Photographic documentation shows products in period interiors, exhibition installations, and studio settings that isolate form for examination. These images communicate scale, surface treatment, and the relationship between B&O products and the spaces they occupied. Technical drawings and design sketches reveal the development process behind finished pieces, demonstrating how industrial designers translate concepts through iteration toward production reality.
Contributors include design historians, former B&O designers, and cultural commentators who situate the company within broader Scandinavian design movements. Their perspectives illuminate how a regional electronics manufacturer achieved international recognition for aesthetic distinction rather than just technical specification. The physical production befits the subject: paper quality, binding construction, and reproduction fidelity honor the visual material while creating an object substantial enough to anchor coffee table arrangements. For those interested in how consumer products can aspire to lasting design significance, this monograph provides comprehensive documentation of one company's sustained commitment to that ambition.
