First of Kind Twiddling Bits with Susan Kare
Jun 5, 2025
Susan Kare, pioneering iconographer who designed the original Macintosh visuals and Chicago typeface. She talks about finding symbols in signage, folk art, and nature. She recalls rapid iteration at early tech teams, the thrill of seeing work on screen, and why collaborative, tinkering cultures shape lasting design.
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Look Outside UI For Lasting Icon Design
- Kare draws icon inspiration from non-digital visual systems like traffic signage, restaurant signs, folk art, shells and beadwork rather than UI books.
- She treats symbols as pre-existing cultural affordances so users recall meanings once told what they represent.
Have Requesters State The Idea First
- Ask requesters to state the big idea in one short sentence before designing a symbol or logo.
- That constraint forces conceptual grounding so the mark isn't merely a decorative doohickey tied to corporate vanity.
How Susan Kare Joined Apple
- Susan Kare got her start at Apple after friend Andy Hertzfeld traded her an Apple II for hand-drawn square images that he used on the Mac prototype screen.
- Kare interviewed at Apple to produce many small symbols and the Chicago typeface, then saw her work rendered on-screen for the first time like a parlor trick.
