Around the time Steve Jobs came back to Apple, I was working with Apple’s core design team of Jony Ive, Chris Stringer, Richard Howarth, Danny Coster, Doug Satzger, Daniele De Iuliis, and Thomas Meyerhoffer. One of the first big projects we did together was the “20th Anniversary Mac”. That was just the beginning of many more projects and color explorations over the next 12+ years.
The initial color exploration for the candy colors started on clear phone bodies. We then adjusted hue, value, and saturation levels in small increments until the final colors were approved by Steve and the design team.
When candy colors were conceived the one color we didn’t use was yellow. The reason for no yellow color exploration was that Steve jobs didn’t want people to associate any of his products with a lemon.
The color standards were used as a control reference for the plastic manufacturing companies in the exploration of visual appearance, texture, and feel for assigned product projects.
When color R&D for a new product was approved, the model main body and all components would be coated with approved colors and finishes. Then the model would at times be used in photo shoots for marketing and packaging prior to production.
It was about 1999 and I was sent by Apple to go to Taiwan and oversee quality control of production procedures for the blueberry clam shell ibook G3. On the same trip I was also sent to South Korea to troubleshoot, instruct, and train the coating technicians on application procedures of the coating process on the G4 flat screen body.
Working with the Apple design team was a fun and exciting experience. Breaking boundaries and thinking outside of the box. Steve and the design team always pushed the limits, and never settled. When Apple would bring an idea to me, no matter how farfetched or difficult it would seem, they never wanted to hear “I can’t do that”. This is what set Apple apart from other companies. No restrictions or limits on innovation and creativity.
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