Jacob Jensen

Jacob Jensen (29 April 1926 – 15 May 2015) was a Danish industrial designer best known for his work with Bang & Olufsen.

Jensen designed numerous popular high-end consumer products, developing a functional minimalism style that formed a prominent part of the Danish modern movement.

Jacob Jensen was born in 1926 in Copenhagen.

Son of Olga and Alfred Jensen, he left school after the seventh grade and completed training as an upholsterer.

In 1947 he began working in his father's shop where he designed chairs.

In 1948 he attended the School of Arts and Crafts (Danmarks Designskole) where he enrolled in the furniture design department.

In 1952 he became the first student to graduate from the institution's Industrial Design program (founded by Jørn Utzon), which focused on mass-produced objects for everyday use.

From 1952 to 1958, Jensen worked at Copenhagen studio Bernadotte & Bjørn (the first industrial design drawing office in Denmark) as an industrial designer.

During his time there he designed various works including the Margrethe Bowl for company Rosti (Rosti Mepal), which became Jensen's first financial success.

This was followed by a period in New York City working with Raymond Loewy.

He also spent some time in Chicago with industrial design firm Latham, Tyler & Jensen.

In 1958 he founded the Jacob Jensen Design Studio. Jensen designed for other brands including Alcatel, Kirk, Boform, General Electric, International Gift Corporation, JO-JO, Labofa, Rodenstock, Rosti (Rosti Mepal), and Stentofon.

His works have been featured at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, and have received numerous design awards.

In 1958 Jensen opened his own studio in Strandgade, Copenhagen.

During this time Jensen designed for General Electric.

In 1964 he started working as a designer for Bang & Olufsen.

During this time Jensen became known for designing audio components of characteristic styles that involved 2-dimensional flattened surfaces with streamlined silver and black designs.

He also worked in collaboration with various other companies where he designed wristwatches, kitchen appliances, telephones, chairs, and other products.

Jensen is credited with developing the B&O design style, which is still used today.

Many of Jensen's designs have been included in permanent design collections at museums around the world.

In 1964 Jensen started working as chief product designer for Bang & Olufsen, an established Danish manufacturer of high-end home electronic products.

In 1966, Jacob Jensen Design moved to its present location in Hejlskov (Limfjord), where he designed over 200 products.

This included radios, speakers, turntables, and other artefacts.

By 1970s, Bang & Olufsen had received numerous awards for its product designs.

The company devised a new slogan, “We think differently,” which was meant to embody the characteristics that made Bang & Olufsen different from other companies at the time.

The company's new products and slogan led to an identification of what Bang & Olufsen referred to as the Seven Corporate Identity Components.

These principles, which underpinned an approach to the company's product design, included Authenticity, Autovisuality, Credibility, Domesticity, Essentiality, Individuality, and Inventiveness.

Through his time at Bang & Olufsen, Jensen developed over 200 products for the company.

During this time he established a minimalistic, horizontal, and severe design style that became characteristic of his product designs.

His style involved using brushed aluminium, white and black plastic, smooth surfaces, futuristic controls, and simple shapes for products including amplifiers, speakers, tuners, turntables and other products.

He redesigned standard knobs and dials, replacing them with clear-plastic panels, wafer-thin push buttons, and other innovative elements.

Jensen’s son, Timothy Jacob Jensen, became his father’s apprentice in 1978.

In 1990, his son Timothy Jacob Jensen became chief executive and chief designer of Jacob Jensen Design, and expanded the company internationally.

Jensen is recognized as Bang & Olufsen’s minimal design idiom, and worked with the company until 1991.

In 2011 Lars Kolind became Chairman of Jacob Jensen Design, and in 2018 became a majority shareholder.

Jacob Jensen is considered a prominent contributor to the mid-century Danish Modern movement, alongside Danish artists including Mogens Koch, Jørn Utzon, Arne Jacobsen, and Poul Henningsen.

Using influences from Raymond Loewy’s consumer-friendly designs and his experience designing for Bang & Olufsen, Jensen merged International design (an architectural design from the U.S.) and the Maya principle (Most Advanced Yet Acceptable).

Jacob Jensen died on May 15, 2015, in Virksund, Denmark.

He left Jacob Jensen Design in 2018 and is no longer connected to the company.

The studio continues to focus on industrial design, and has branches in Denmark, China, and Thailand.