Yves Behar
Encyclopedia
Yves Béhar is a designer, entrepreneur, and sustainability advocate. He is the founder of fuseproject
, the San Francisco and New York based design and branding firm he established in 1999. He is also Chief Creative Officer at Jawbone, where he as built the brand through products, packaging, user experience, and communication design for the last 8 years.
, Switzerland
to a German mother and a Turkish
father.
He studied industrial design in Europe
and the United States
, and holds a B.S. in Industrial Design
from the Art Center College of Design
, California
.
Currently, he chairs the Industrial Design Department at California College of the Arts
.
Béhar’s designs and creative positioning are at work in diverse areas as fashion
, lifestyle, sports and technology
, for clients such as Herman Miller, PUMA, One Laptop Per Child, Jawbone, MINI, See Better to Learn Better, GE, Swarovski, Samsung, Jimmyjane, and Prada. Béhar is also the co-founder of the Cradle to Cradle Institute.
Fuseproject was the top winner of the IDSA IDEA/Fast Company awards with 14 winning products in 2010.
. He designs the Jawbone brand, packaging, communications and products. He designed the JAMBOX, a completely wireless, bluetooth compact audio speaker and also worked on UP, Jawbone's newest lifestyle and wellness product.
Behar is a partner in PACT Underwear, an organic underwear company that gives 10% of their proceeds to the various non-profit organizations it partners with, such as Creative Growth and 826 Valencia. He also partners with Peel, a company that created an app and a hardware ecosystem that turns your mobile device into a universal television remote. Other investment and partner companies include Mint Cleaner, Fanhattan, Mission Motors
, Ywater, Equal Media and Herman Miller
.
In 2009, he collaborated with Ethan Imboden of Jimmyjane
on the Pleasure to the People line of waterproof rechargeable vibrators, including the FORM 2, FORM 3 and FORM 4.
In 2008, Behar redesigned the NYC Condom
logo and packaging, as well as NYC Condom vending machines for the New York City Department of Health as a part of an initiative to reduce HIV/AIDS and teen pregnancy.
Behar designed eyeglasses for the “Ver Bien para Aprender Mejor” program in Mexico to provide eye-care to students. The program free pairs of custom designed glasses throughout Mexico since 2010. In May 2011, Behar partnered with Tipping Point, a San Francisco based philanthropic organization, who made a pledge to the “See Well to Learn” program, aiming to distribute free pairs of glasses to Bay Area students.
Fuseproject
Founded in 1999 by Yves Béhar, Fuseproject is a San Francisco-based industrial design and branding firm. It works across a wide array of industries including beauty and fashion, furniture and technology....
, the San Francisco and New York based design and branding firm he established in 1999. He is also Chief Creative Officer at Jawbone, where he as built the brand through products, packaging, user experience, and communication design for the last 8 years.
Early life and education
Béhar was born in LausanneLausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
to a German mother and a Turkish
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
father.
He studied industrial design in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and holds a B.S. in Industrial Design
Industrial design
Industrial design is the use of a combination of applied art and applied science to improve the aesthetics, ergonomics, and usability of a product, but it may also be used to improve the product's marketability and production...
from the Art Center College of Design
Art Center College of Design
Art Center College of Design is a private college located in Pasadena, California, and was cited by BusinessWeek as one of the 60 best design schools in the world. The college’s industrial design program is consistently ranked number one by both DesignIntelligence and U.S...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Currently, he chairs the Industrial Design Department at California College of the Arts
California College of the Arts
California College of the Arts , founded in 1907, is known for its broad, interdisciplinary programs in art, design, architecture, and writing. It has two campuses, one in Oakland and one in San Francisco, California, USA...
.
Career
Upon founding fuseproject in 1999, Behar said his goals are threefold. Firstly, he wants to be a futurist, optimistic about the possibilities of new technology. Secondly, he's a humanist, in that his designs seek to put the human experience first. And, finally, he's a committed naturalist, promoting sustainable ways of living and consuming. That fusion, of technology with humanity, of brand and story, of all aspects of design, from product to advertising to online to point of purchase to user experience, is his central message. He states, "We have one foot in the consumer's space and one foot in our client's space, so we can act as the bridge, or the glue."Béhar’s designs and creative positioning are at work in diverse areas as fashion
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
, lifestyle, sports and technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
, for clients such as Herman Miller, PUMA, One Laptop Per Child, Jawbone, MINI, See Better to Learn Better, GE, Swarovski, Samsung, Jimmyjane, and Prada. Béhar is also the co-founder of the Cradle to Cradle Institute.
Fuseproject was the top winner of the IDSA IDEA/Fast Company awards with 14 winning products in 2010.
Design Ventures
He is the Chief Creative Officer of the highly acclaimed wearable technology company, JawboneJawbone (headset)
The Jawbone is a line of Bluetooth mobile phone headsets produced by Aliph, a privately held San Francisco-based consumer technology company founded by Alex Asseily and Hosain Rahman. Since the introduction of the line in December 2006, it has been widely regarded as one of the best Bluetooth...
. He designs the Jawbone brand, packaging, communications and products. He designed the JAMBOX, a completely wireless, bluetooth compact audio speaker and also worked on UP, Jawbone's newest lifestyle and wellness product.
Behar is a partner in PACT Underwear, an organic underwear company that gives 10% of their proceeds to the various non-profit organizations it partners with, such as Creative Growth and 826 Valencia. He also partners with Peel, a company that created an app and a hardware ecosystem that turns your mobile device into a universal television remote. Other investment and partner companies include Mint Cleaner, Fanhattan, Mission Motors
Mission Motors
Mission Motors is an American company founded in 2007 in San Francisco, California. The company was originally founded with the aim of creating high-performance, electric motorcycles, but later became a supplier of electric vehicle components.-History:...
, Ywater, Equal Media and Herman Miller
Herman Miller
Herman Miller may refer to:*Herman Miller , U.S. manufacturer of office furniture and equipment*Herman Miller , Hollywood writer and producer...
.
In 2009, he collaborated with Ethan Imboden of Jimmyjane
Jimmyjane
Jimmyjane is a privately-held company in San Francisco, California that produces high-end, design oriented sexual accessories including vibrators and sex toys...
on the Pleasure to the People line of waterproof rechargeable vibrators, including the FORM 2, FORM 3 and FORM 4.
Civic Works
He is the chief industrial designer of OLPC's XO laptop, signing on with the project in 2005 and has been with the team since March 2006. This collaboration has led to two additional laptop prototypes, the OLPC XOXO and OLPC XO-3.In 2008, Behar redesigned the NYC Condom
NYC Condom
The NYC Condom, funded by New York City's Department of Health, is a program run by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to distribute free condoms.The NYC Condom is the first municipally branded condom in the United States.-Launch:...
logo and packaging, as well as NYC Condom vending machines for the New York City Department of Health as a part of an initiative to reduce HIV/AIDS and teen pregnancy.
Behar designed eyeglasses for the “Ver Bien para Aprender Mejor” program in Mexico to provide eye-care to students. The program free pairs of custom designed glasses throughout Mexico since 2010. In May 2011, Behar partnered with Tipping Point, a San Francisco based philanthropic organization, who made a pledge to the “See Well to Learn” program, aiming to distribute free pairs of glasses to Bay Area students.
Recognitions
- Solo museum exhibitions:
- The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, 2004
- The Musée de design et d'arts appliqués contemporains (MUDAC) in LausanneLausanneLausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
, SwitzerlandSwitzerlandSwitzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, 2004
- IDEA Awards 2010: ranked #1 winner with 14 awards in Fast Company
- Advertising Age Best Ads – PACT: Be Good, Plant Wood. 2010
- Treehugger’s Best of Green Design Awards 2010 – Herman Miller SAYL and GE WattStation
- Behar listed among Creativity’s “Creativity 50”
- Behar listed among TIME’s Top 25 Visionaries
- Design Museum London Design of the Year for One Laptop Per Child (Brit Insurance 2008 Design Award)
- INDEX award for the OLPC XO laptop
- National Design Award from the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design MuseumCooper-Hewitt, National Design MuseumCooper–Hewitt, National Design Museum, a subsidiary of the Smithsonian Institution, is the United States' national museum of design history and contemporary design and the only museum in the U.S. whose collection is solely focused on contemporary and historic design...
- Fast Company 2007 Master of Design
- Conde Nast Designer of the Year, 2011
- Conde Nast Sustainable Product of the Year, 2011
Further reading
- Yves Behar+Fuseproject Commerce/Concept, Yves Behar. ISBN 978-3764370725.
- Yves Behar: Fuseproject (Design Focus), Gingko Press. ISBN 7500640889.
- Yves Behar Fuseproject: Design Series 2 (Sfmoma Design Series, 2), Joseph Rosa and Yves Behar. ISBN 0918471710.
External links
- FASTCOMPANY.com — Masters of Design
- The Seven axioms of Yves
- Feature on Yves Behar, Wired Magazine
- FASTCOMPANY feature
- Interview
- The Brand Wizard: Yves Behar, Business Week
- Feature on his home, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
- TED Talks: Yves Behar on designing objects that tell stories at TEDTED (conference)TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
in 2008 - Video of talk with Judith Thurman, The New YorkerThe New YorkerThe New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
- Interview Yves Béhar, part 1, part 2 Video 2010
- Interview in Future by Design on Forbes.com