The Fabulous Life Of Sir Jony Ive, The Genius Behind Apple’s Design

After the late Steve Jobs, no one has had more influence on Apple than Jonathan Ive, the company’s SVP of Design.

Ive has worked at Apple for 22 years. In that time he has recieved countless awards and accolades for his ingenuity and commitment to Apple’s minimalist design aesthetic.

He’s also become quite famous. The London native is frequently spotted at clubs and lives in California, near Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino.

Ive’s success at Apple has made him a household name and catapulted him into conversations about popular culture.

He’s also amassed a fortune.

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Jonathan Ive was born on February 27, 1967, in Chingford, a London suburb. His father was a silversmith. Ive recalls letting his imagination go wild in his father’s workshop.

Ive studied industrial design at Newcastle Polytechnic, now called Northumbria University.

Some of Ive’s collegiate drawings have been exhibited at the London Design Museum.

Here’s an early Ive sketch of an electronic pen that could write in different widths and patterns.

His first design for Apple was the Lindy MessagePad. Ive’s favorite part was the flip cover, which foreshadowed the popularity of flip cellphones.

Here’s a younger shot of Ive. He joined Apple in 1992 and became SVP of Design after Steve Jobs returned to the company in 1997.

Jobs’ first major assignment for Ive was the iMac, pictured below with Jobs.

These days Ive lives in San Francisco and commutes to Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino, California.

In 2012 he bought this 4-bedroom house in Pacific Heights for $17 million. It was designed by Willis Polk, a renown San Francisco architect. That part of Pac Heights is called “Billionaire’s Row,” and for good reason.

Polk also designed San Francisco Palace of Fine Arts, seen here.

Ive also has quite the car collection. He once helped his dad restore an Austin-Healey Sprite.

Ive used to own an Aston Martin DB9, but crashed it near San Bruno, California.

Ive bought a second DB9, but it turned out to be a lime. So he complained to Aston Martin and they gave him a deal on their Vanquish supercar.

Next Ive bought a white Bentley Brooklands. Here’s a shot of the interior.

Ive liked the Brooklands so much he bought a second one in black.

He also owns a Land Rover LR3.

After Steve Jobs died, Ive asked CEO Tim Cook for his own Gulfstream jet. Apple’s board rejected the request.

In May 2012 Ive was knighted in Buckingham Palace by Princess Anne, Queen Elizabeth II’s only daughter. Ive said the experience was “absolutely thrilling.”

Ive met the Duchess of Cambridge at the knighting ceremony.

He’s friends with Bono and designer Marc Newson, too.

Ive is also close with Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer. The two sat together at this dinner last year.

Last year Ive vacationed in Seward, Alaska. Not a bad place to go on holiday, as they say in Europe.

This year he’s been spotted at the Chiltern Firehouse, a posh nightclub in London’s West End.

He also gets invited to mingle with the rich and powerful. Ive was invited to this White House State Dinner for UK Prime Minister David Cameron in 2012.

More recently Ive was spotted at Apple headquarters with LA Lakers star Kobe Bryant.

His design fame has led him to charity work. Ive designed this Leica, which set the record for a camera sold at auction.

He also designed this Jaeger-LeCoultre watch for an AIDS charity auction.

Now see what Apple is up to.

Here’s A Giant Presentation That Tells You Everything You Need To Know About Apple Right Now

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