Month: July 2013

Apple’s signature values

Recently Apple introduced this rather emotionally poignant TV commercial, presumably as a salvo against intensifying pressure from competitors:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zr1s_B0zqX0

It is a summary of the core values of Apple as a company, brand, and hallmark of savvy consumer innovation expressed in vivid human storytelling of vignettes that capture the “love” for Apple as an embodiment of what’s next, yet what’s familiar and desirable, woven into daily lifestyle.

CEO Tim Cook cited this ad as a statement of Apple’s values (a visual manifesto, even) but also re-affirmation of their signature, “Designed by Apple in California.” (He left out the “Manufactured in China” part, but hey that’s another post for another day ;-) The ad is quite powerful and worth studying a bit. Yet again Apple fights “tech specs” with emotional appeal.

(Update: Apparently this particular ad has been rated as a “flop” with viewers. Hmm.)

Apple also released this beautifully expressive typographic motion piece conveying the same ideas with perhaps more design-centricity for a particular audience, UI design geeks ;-) This is definitely worth a few viewings and studying as well. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpZmIiIXuZ0

Massimo Vignelli on “Quality”

This is just brilliant! From a recent interview with Vignelli, in Eye magazine (print edition), I’ve re-typed this segment below. IMHO this is of vital importance, and a valuable reminder, to deliver design excellence and stay true to design values of “Craftsmanship” and “Delivering Unique Value”, etc. 
 
“Quality, like Modernism, is an attitude, which means that one does not go below a certain standard. Quality is a way of living, a life attitude and a constant fight to eliminate any hint of vulgarity from one’s mind. This is a constant job of enormous proportions because the bombardment that we continuously have, the amount of seduction that we receive from life, makes this fight against crudeness a very heavy job.

Quality is when you know that you have reached a high level in your work, when it really sings, when it touches you, when it responds. Quality is a level of intellectual elegance that is unmatched in other forms. When you see that there is no more vulgarity in it, you’ve got the sense of quality. So quality is something that you can achieve by continuously refining your mind through exposure to things which are the best manifestation of people that came before you, or are around you. That is what you obtain by nourishing yourself away from anything which has vulgarity in it. Quality is when you solve all of the problems that you have to solve in a way that is beyond the expected. So it is the sum of many things, and the answer to many searches. Quality is a by-product of passion, curiosity, intensity, and professionalism.”  

— Massimo Vignelli, legendary designer of graphics, products, information systems
(American Airlines, Bloomingdales, JC Penney, Knoll identities, and the original NYC Subway diagram)