Design Matters

As Vice President of Human Interface Design at Apple, Alan Dye has spent much of his career working for a company that has done perhaps more than any other to make design sexy, essential, and highly coveted. He joins to discuss his lustrous creative path working with Ogilvy’s Brand Integration Group, Kate Spade, Apple and the brand new, highly anticipated Apple Vision Pro.

The author of the award-winning novels “Pachinko” and “Free Food for Millionaires,” Min Jin Lee, discusses her remarkable career and the long journey and intention behind her Korean diaspora novels.

Over the course of his storied career as a designer and educator, Dr. D’Wayne Edwards has created more than 500 footwear styles for premier entertainers such as Tupac, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dog, and Notorious B.I.G. His designs have been worn in six Olympics and graced all MLB, NFL, and NBA stadiums. He joins to talk about his remarkable career and current role as President of Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design.

Known for her elaborate paintings composed of rhinestones, acrylic, and enamel, Mickalene Thomas draws on art history and popular culture to create a contemporary vision of female sexuality, beauty, and power.

Best-selling author, scientist, and trailblazer in autism research, Dr. Temple Grandin’s new book “Visual Thinking” draws on cutting-edge research and her own lived experience to reframe the conversation on neurodiversity and different types of thinkers.

Best known for her controversial novels featuring extreme situations and characters, A.M. Homes discusses her most recent book, The Unfolding, and her remarkable career authoring thirteen extraordinarily original books.

Jason Reynolds—award-winning author and National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature—discusses his prolific writing career that inspires young readers to discover their own stories.

Described as a darkly funny meditation on creativity and family, Brad Listi joins to talk about his new book, “Be Brief and Tell Them Everything.”

Amy Ray and Emily Saliers talk about their extraordinary 30-year creative collaboration as the music duo, Indigo Girls.

With her blog, Dooce, Heather Armstrong ushered in a new genre of confessional writing online, inspiring millions of readers and creators. To honor her legacy, we are replaying the episode from 2011. Among many things, we talked about suicide and depression, so please be forewarned.

Best known for her Emmy and Golden Globe-winning role as Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson on the TNT crime drama The Closer, Kyra Sedgwick joins to discuss her remarkable acting career and new directorial debut, Space Oddity.

Singer-songwriter Martha Wainwright joins to discuss her latest album and new memoir about growing up in a family of rock ‘n’ roll royalty and her experiences with love, loss, motherhood, divorce, and the music industry.

Best known for her role as Bond girl Pam Bouvier in the James Bond movie License to Kill and ADA Jamie Ross in the television series Law & Order, Carey Lowell joins to discuss her career as a model, actress, and ceramicist.

Neil deGrasse Tyson—world-renowned astrophysicist, Emmy-nominated host, and author—is one of the most popular and influential figures in modern science. He joins to discuss his cosmic career and new book, “Starry Messenger: Cosmic Perspectives on Civilization.”

Peter Arnell has built an unparalleled reputation creating groundbreaking, boundary-averse work for many of the world’s most celebrated brands. He joins to discuss his new book and storied career as a designer, branding executive, photographer, founder, and CEO.

A founding member of the Bangles, a solo artist, and a collaborator, Susanna Hoffs boasts one of pop music’s most striking and beloved voices. She joins to talk about her prolific music career and her new book, “This Bird Has Flown.”

American actress and playwright Kirsten Vangsness joins to discuss her role as bespectacled tech kitten Penelope Garcia on the long-running CBS crime drama Criminal Minds.

Don Norman, the Godfather of UX Design and Cognitive Science’s foremost pioneer, joins to discuss his new book “Design for a Better World” and how human behavior can save the world from its dire predicament.

Exploring Rick Rubin’s production discography is like taking a tour through the commanding heights of American music over the past few decades. From Run-DMC to Jay-Z to Adele, the record producer joins to talk about his legendary career making classic songs with the best musicians in the world.

Best known for writing and directing the Academy Award-Winning film CODA and her work on the television series Orange Is the New Black—Siân Heder joins to talk about her remarkable career as a writer, producer, and filmmaker.

Lynn Goldsmith has documented over five decades of American culture, photographing stars from The Beatles and The Rolling Stones to David Bowie and Iggy Pop. She joins to talk about her legendary career behind the camera and new book, “Music in the ‘80s.”

Jason Reynolds—award-winning author and National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature—discusses his prolific writing career that inspires young readers to discover their own stories.

Oscar-nominated screenwriter, director, actor, and author Sarah Polley, who began her career as a childhood actress more than three decades ago, joins to talk about her life’s work and newest film, “Women Talking.”

Sitting at the nexus of art, fashion and academia, Dario Calmese is an artist, urbanist, director and brand consultant. He shares his thoughts on photography and the design of the world around us on this very special live episode.

Having won an Olympic gold medal and two Women’s World Cups, Megan Rapinoe is among the most decorated and world famous athletes of our time. She joins to talk about her legendary soccer career, activism, and New York Times Best-Selling book.

Delivering soulful vocals over warm, atmospheric synth productions, young music prodigy King Princess joins to talk about their career and the double-edged nature of early success in the music business.

Alexandra Horowitz—a canine psychologist and authority on how dogs perceive the world—joins to talk about her latest book, ‘The Year of the Puppy,’ and share her knowledge about the relationship between humans and our canine friends.

Will Guidara—an elite New York restauranteur and author—talks about his storied career as a leader in modern luxury dining, delivering service that transforms a meal into a magical experience.

Guy Kawasaki—author, educator, and Chief Evangelist of Canva—talks about his career in Silicon Valley and his experience working for Steve Jobs as Chief Evangelist of Apple.

On this special episode of Design Matters, we look back at the collective brilliance of the musicians and performers interviewed in 2022. Best of Design Matters 2022 with Jack White, Indigo Girls, Joan As Police Woman, Dylan Marron, and Chris Evert is live!

On this special episode of Design Matters, we take a look back at the collective brilliance of fiction writers interviewed in 2022. Best of Design Matters 2022 with Brad Listi, Jason Reynolds, A.M. Homes, Candice Carty-Williams, and Min Jin Lee is live!

Best known for starring in the film “The Hobbyist,” Daniel Mitura discusses his multi-hyphenated career as an actor, writer, producer, and playwright and his new science-fiction short film “Launch at Paradise.”

The author of the award-winning novels “Pachinko” and “Free Food for Millionaires,” Min Jin Lee, discusses her remarkable career and the long journey and intention behind her Korean diaspora novels.

Over the course of his storied career as a designer and educator, Dr. D’Wayne Edwards has created more than 500 footwear styles for premier entertainers such as Tupac, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dog, and Notorious B.I.G. His designs have been worn in six Olympics and graced all MLB, NFL, and NBA stadiums. He joins to talk about his remarkable career and current role as President of Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design.

James Clear has been writing about habits, decision making, and continuous improvement for over a decade. Author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Atomic Habits, he joins to talk about his career and how we can stop sabotaging our efforts with insurmountable goals.

Known for her elaborate paintings composed of rhinestones, acrylic, and enamel, Mickalene Thomas draws on art history and popular culture to create a contemporary vision of female sexuality, beauty, and power.

Monica Khemsurov and Jill Singer are the co-founders of Sight Unseen, an online magazine where designers and tastemakers go to find what’s new and next in design and the visual arts. They join to share insights and secrets unveiled in their new book, “How to Live With Objects: A Guide to More Meaningful Interiors.”

Hailed the “Father of Modern Branding,” David Aaker has received numerous awards for his contributions to the science of marketing and authored some of the most influential books in business. He joins to talk about his new book, “The Future of Purpose-Driven Branding,” and his legendary career.

PepsiCo’s award-winning Chief Design Officer, Mauro Porcini, reveals the secret to creating life-changing innovation in his new book, a manifesto for a genuine, authentic, and deeply humanistic approach to design.

As founder of the Rockwell Group, an award winning, cross-disciplinary architecture and design practice, David Rockwell has designed countless visual and spatial heartstoppers ranging from restaurants, hotels, airport terminals, and hospitals, to festivals, museum exhibitions, and Broadway sets. He joins to talk about his remarkable life and upcoming projects.

Michael Kimmelman has been the architecture critic of The New York Times since 2011, writing about cities, public space, infrastructure, community development, public housing, equity, and the environment. He joins to talk about his extraordinary career in journalism and his new book, “The Intimate City: Walking New York.”

Best-selling author, scientist, and trailblazer in autism research, Dr. Temple Grandin’s new book “Visual Thinking” draws on cutting-edge research and her own lived experience to reframe the conversation on neurodiversity and different types of thinkers.

Steven Heller—legendary writer and author—joins to discuss his new book “Growing Up Underground,” an entertaining and humorous coming-of-age story at the center of New York’s youth culture in the 1960s and 1970s.

Author of the Sunday Times bestselling Queenie—Candice Carty-Williams joins a very special guest host, Roxane Gay, to talk about her latest novel People Person which follows the Pennington family, a cadre of five half-siblings forced together in the wake of a dramatic event.

Best known for her controversial novels featuring extreme situations and characters, A.M. Homes discusses her most recent book, The Unfolding, and her remarkable career authoring thirteen extraordinarily original books.

Michael Stipe joins to talk about his remarkable life, photography practice, and career as the lead singer and lyricist for the band R.E.M.

Rising to the top of tennis stardom, Chris Evert talks about her groundbreaking career as a legendary athlete.

Jessica Nordell—science and cultural journalist—explores ways of changing pernicious thought patterns to eliminate unconscious bias for a more just world.

Long a believer in the impossible, Rickie Lee Jones has lived an extraordinary life of song. Here, she reflects on five decades of making music.

At 8 years old, Catherine Opie realized “that history is made within an image culture”—and here, she discusses her incredible life as a photographer driven by culture.