Women in History: Susan Kare

Since the release of Apple’s revolutionary Maintosh computer in 1984, everyone has become familiar with Mac computers. Many of us rely on them to get us through our college careers, and many professionals such as designers and software engineers swear by Mac operating systems. They claim that their interfaces are better than anything else. Everyone, of course, credits Steve Jobs for this invention, but what about some of the lesser-known members of the original team? Take, for example, Susan Kare, the lead graphic designer for the project, who created all of the 1984 Mac’s well-known icons, many of which we still use in some form today, such as the save and delete buttons. Although not a widely-known name outside of the design world, Kare was able to give a sense of emotion and usability to the original Macintosh computer, which was a huge part of its success.

Kare was working as a sculptor and art curator when Andy Hertzfeld, a high school friend, asked her to create graphic icons for a new computer that he was working on. She quickly went to work on the project, creating a set of icons that would represent the commands the new computer would have, such as a pair of scissors representing “cut,” a trashcan representing “delete”, and, perhaps the most iconic of all, the well-known floppy disc icon representing the “save” feature. When thinking about these icons, it doesn’t take long to realize how ingrained Kare’s work is in the computer systems and software that we use. Nearly everyone is familiar with at least some of her more well-known symbols, such as the trashcan and floppy disc, and more modern adaptations of these continue to be seen in recent updates of programs and systems (such as the tiny four-pointed symbol on the Macbook “command” key).  

While designing these icons might seem like a simple task, consider how interacting with icons enhances the experience of using the computer. One of the goals Kare undertook when designing was to make the Macintosh as easy to use as possible, and make it feel less like a bulky, lifeless machine. As it was the first relatively cheap computer available to the average person, it needed to be as accessible as possible for anyone who might come across it, and the integration of Kare’s charming icons helped achieve this. 

Kare has since worked with more than 50 major clients, including Intel, IBM, and Sony, and she currently works as the creative director at Pinterest, where she focuses on adding structure and simplicity to the platform’s feed. Her work has been featured in various museums worldwide, including the National Museum of American History and MoMA, and in 2018 she was awarded with an AIGA Medal (which is basically the graphic design equivalent of a Nobel Prize). Although history has unfortunately not given credit where it’s due to many important and influential women, Women’s History Month is a great time to pay homage to some of these unknown but important ladies. The next time you move an old file to the trashcan icon on your computer, remember to thank the designer behind this and consider how different using the computer today would be without her work. 

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