Landmark Designs

“Hello, I’m Macintosh. It sure is great to get out of that bag.” On 24 January 1984, Apple introduced the first Macintosh computer to the world. There’s footage of that day on YouTube, in which co-founder Steve Jobs walks across the stage, removes the device from its carry case and inserts a floppy disk. Then, he stands back as the word MACINTOSH scrolls across the screen. Chariots of Fire plays in the background. The computer, in a digitised voice, later declares Jobs as its father. The whole event is tinged with a sense of humour: it made computing into something funny, light-hearted and accessible to a mass market audience.

It’s no secret that design was, and still is, fundamental to the Apple brand. A sleek, minimal and clean aesthetic unites all its offerings – including today’s AirPods, Apple Watches, iPhones, iPads and iMacs. “Design is a funny word,” Jobs told Wired back in 1994. “Some people think design means how it looks. But of course, if you dig deeper, it’s really how it works. The design of the Mac wasn’t what it looked like, although that was part of it. Primarily, it was how it worked.” When it comes to building a computer, a huge part of the “how it works” lies within the user interface: the symbols, desktop, windows and so on. These elements define how a human being will interact with the box of circuitry hidden under the hood. In 1984, Macintosh was about to change the game with its unprecedented “friendly” approach to UX design.

This is where San Francisco-based graphic designer Susan Kare (b. 1954) enters the picture. She is the creator of Macintosh’s original icons, typefaces and user interface graphics, and, as such, is one of the world’s most influential women in technology. 40 years on, her pixel art remains instantly recognisable – from the “happy Macintosh” that greeted users on startup to the intuitive “floppy disk” for saving files and the Command “looped square” symbol. Kare is credited as giving the Macintosh its characteristic – and widely emulated – look and feel. She helped transform computer screens from text-heavy and intimidating to welcoming and easy-to-use. Her work is held in the Museum of Modern Art collection in New York, and has been exhibited at the Smithsonian Institute, Washington, DC, and Design Museum, London.

Now, an exhibition of Kare’s work launches during London Frieze Week 2024. Titled Esc Key, it draws on her legacy as the creative who “humanised” computers and brings the story up to date. On view at Asprey Studio Gallery in Mayfair, London, it includes new icons that are available as enamelled images on silver computer keycaps. They can be worn as necklace pendants or presented as framed, wall-mounted fine art pieces. One will feature the playful “panic!” button Kare once installed on her keyboard; it’s a whimsical nod to the idea of escaping the pressures of modern society. The show is a collaboration with Asprey Studio Founder Alastair Walker, a painter, designer and sculptor who also works with digital media. He describes Kare as “an influential and pioneering artist who works with reduced palettes and resolutions to convey, in an immediately understandable way, complex and often inexpressible tasks.”