How did Brooks Stevens design his products?
His process was similar to that of many other industrial designers of his era. After being hired to design (or redesign) a product, he would usually do some quick sketches. These would have the basic lines of the new design and get across the main idea of its look and function. Next, he would assign the project to one of his staff designers, who would take his sketch and make a more finished “rendering” or drawing of it. Sometimes these were beautiful images in their own right, with subtle coloration in airbrush or marker. Usually several renderings, showing various alternatives for the design, were made. Stevens would then meet with the client and decide which version was best. Next, a three-dimensional model (either scale or full size) was made by one of Stevens’ specialist modelmakers. In the early days of his career, this was done by hand using sculpting clay, but during the 1960s the firm began using cast fiberglass. After being formed the model was painted and embellished with me
