Good Jobs Steve...
13.10.2011 Features
Steve Jobs had a phenomenal impact on the communication design profession. His introduction to graphic design and typography through calligraphy is a fascinating story, a non-conventional pathway by a corporate leader indeed, but one that may hopefully inspire others.
Communication design seemed to be the essence of the manÂ’s psyche. Apple products are more than beautiful objects - they communicate and interact with users in a way not seen previously. Beyond revolutionising the finished art and typesetting processes for graphic designers in the 1980s, Jobs continued to innovate, building on the potential of the graphical-user-interface (GUI) as a user-friendly interface for other products and new communication platforms.
His machines were the first to enable designers to converge, expand, share and communicate. Apple made expanded media possible. This convergence of disciplines shifted graphic design into the broader scope of communication design that we understand today.
Jobs was also responsible for one of the great corporate identities of our time. The Apple case study demonstrates how the success of a brand far exceeds the graphical representation of its logo. Jobs ensured that the Apple philosophy was embedded in every aspect of the company. If a corporate identity provides a window to the soul of an organisation, then Apple did and continues to do so like no other.
Jobs and Apple have been an inspiring example of a design-based business model. A design thinking approach to business and a respectful, accessible and syncopated approach to usability through design are his greatest legacy (Think Different).
If history judges Steve Jobs on his output then one could argue that Jobs' impact on graphic/communication design was the greatest since Gutenberg... perhaps greater.
Russell Kennedy
Icograda President 2009-2011
relatedarticles
goodbye! and next steps for colleague and friend alexey lazarev
explorations in ethical design: meditations on equality
RCA launches new programme: MA Digital Direction
Interview | Ermolaev Bureau (Moscow)
