Independent’s Ive Interview

Posted by Eric March on May 24, 2008 at 11:21 pm

By now, and if you didn’t already, you’re probably quite aware of who Johnathan Ive is — the guy who just won two more ultra-rare Black Pencil awards to go with the 4 he already has? The one who designs the devices you all know and love? Yeah, that guy. Recently, The Independent’s Claire Beale had a chance to get the elusive Ive on the phone for an interview, and he had a few interesting thing to say

Apple is unique, Ive says, by being in the hardware and the software games; design permeates through everything. “We have a very clear focus that all the development teams at Apple share, a focus around trying to make really great products.

“That can sound ridiculously simplistic, almost naive, but it’s very unique for the product to be what consumes you completely. And when I say the product I mean the product in its total sense, the hardware and the software, the complete experience that people will have. We push each other, we’re very self-critical and we’ll take the time to get the product right.”

For many people working in the creative industries, the bedrock of Mac believers, Ive is a hero, a creative genius: the man who transformed computers from grey boxes to objects of desire, design statements.

That’s what D&AD has recognised and rewarded. But you don’t have to be a creative purist to appreciate what Ive does. For everyone who loves Macs and iPods and iPhones for their intuition, for their clean aesthetics, for their leading edge, elegant functionality, Ive is the man who made technology both beautiful and accessible.

Ive has definitely been influential throughout the electronics world, not just Apple computers. It was the iMac — the source of another of his Black Pencils — that transformed computers from dull white boxes to colourful, aesthetically pleasing devices that were as much form as function, and working at Apple has certainly given him a unique perspective on the industry, being as they are a “whole package” company that design both the software and the hardware to create a harmonious blend from start to finish. In any event, it’s a great read, so check out the whole article here.

(Source: The Independent)

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