The one-of-a-kind Leica designed by Jony Ive and Marc Newson Leica
The one-of-a-kind Leica designed by Jony Ive and Marc Newson
A Newson-designed concept car for Ford. Ford
A Newson-designed concept car for Ford.
One of Newson's signature biomorphic chairs. Marc Newson
One of Newson's signature biomorphic chairs.
A watch from Newson's company, Ikepod. Ikepod
A watch from Newson's company, Ikepod.
A Newson-designed Pentax camera. Pentax
A Newson-designed Pentax camera.
The al-u-min-i-um desk designed by Ive and Newson. Marc Newson
The al-u-min-i-um desk designed by Ive and Newson.
Biomega bike, by Newson. Biomega
Biomega bike, by Newson.
Marc Newson, the renowned industrial designer, is joining Apple.
The news, first reported by Vanity Fair , is about as big of a deal as it gets in the design world. It means that Apple will now officially have two of the world’s best-known and most influential designers working together on future products.
The collaboration is not an entirely new one. Newson—probably best known for his furniture, though his work has included cars, cameras, and (yes) watches—has been close friends with Apple’s design master, Jony Ive, for a number of years. Recently, the pair co-curated a charity auction for Sotheby’s, for which they collaborated on two wholly new designs: a 2,600 pound aluminum desk and a limited-edition-of-one Leica camera.
In a statement to Vanity Fair, Ive had this to say about the announcement:
“Marc is without question one of the most influential designers of this generation…He is extraordinarily talented. We are particularly excited to formalize our collaboration as we enjoy working together so much and have found our partnership so effective.”
The announcement is an unexpected one, to say the least. Newson is a celebrity designer in his own right, having worked for companies like Ford, Pentax, Nike and Qantas, the Australian airline. His furniture, with curvy “biomorphic” forms that have the designer’s signature style, sells for hundreds of thousands of dollars. (Jony Ive reportedly sits in a Newson-designed chair in Apple’s design shop.) His work’s in MOMA’s permanent collection. In 2005, he was one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people of the year.
So what does Apple want with him? It could simply be a response to Jony Ive’s expanded role in the company. Now that Ive’s in charge of the company’s software products, Newson’s addition could relieve some of the burden on the hardware side.
But it’s hard to imagine Newson being content to play second-fiddle to Ive, toiling away on the iPhones 7, 8 and 9. Instead, it seems more likely that Newson will be something like a high-powered consultant, helping shape Apple’s product pipeline as the company continues its transition into a true lifestyle brand. Indeed, Vanity Fair’s report suggests that the two have already collaborated on some Apple products, perhaps even Apple’s wearable, which is expected to be unveiled next week. Intriguingly, Newson has designed several timepieces for his own watch company, Ikepod.
Newson will reportedly continue to live in the UK and do his own design work, though he’ll visit Cupertino regularly. Not that working remotely should be a big deal. “It’s very very easy for us to talk on the phone and design something more or less verbally,” Newson told WIRED last year, commenting on his collaboration with Ive for the charity auction. “We’ve both been doing our jobs for more than 20 years—it’s what we do day in and day out. We speak each other’s language completely fluently.”
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