King Charles coronation: who designed coronation emblem - did Sir Jony Ive design the Apple iPhone?

Design guru Sir Jony Ive has created an emblem inspired by the King’s “love of the planet, nature, and his deep concern for the natural world” to mark his coronation.

It features a stylised image of St Edward’s Crown, which will be used to crown the monarch, created from the rose of England, thistle of Scotland, daffodil of Wales and the shamrock of Northern Ireland, in the red, white and blue of the Union flag. It has been revealed ahead of the coronation which will take place in May.

The coronation emblem will feature throughout a special bank holiday weekend which will begin when Charles is crowned monarch on Saturday 6 May at Westminster Abbey. The following day, thousands of spectators – awarded tickets in a national ballot – will watch a star-studded Windsor Castle concert as the celebrations continue.

It will also be seen at other national events, street parties and community gatherings marking the historic event and be used on all official merchandise commemorating the coronation. Here is all you need to know about the emblem.

Who designed the coronation emblem?

Sir Jony Ive and his creative collective, LoveFrom, have produced the insignia to celebrate Charles’s new reign. He said: “It is such an honour to be able to contribute to this remarkable national occasion, and our team is so very proud of this work.

“The design was inspired by King Charles’s love of the planet, nature, and his deep concern for the natural world. The emblem speaks to the happy optimism of spring and celebrates the beginning of this new Carolean era for the United Kingdom.

“The gentle modesty of these natural forms combine to define an emblem that acknowledges both the joyful and profound importance of this occasion.”

Who is Sir Jony Ive?

Sir Jony was the chief design officer for Apple Inc from 1997 to 2019 and is credited with the co-designing the iPhone, one of the best-loved gadgets of the modern age. He was also co-designer of the iMac, iPod and iPad during his time with the tech giant.

Born in London in 1967, he studied at Newcastlye Polytechnic (now Northumbria University) before joining startup design agency Tangerine. Apple became a client and he designed the firm’s initial PowerBook.

He joined Apple in 1992 and rose through the ranks to become the chief design officer in 1997. From 2017 to 2022 he served as Chancellor for the Royal College of Art.

Has Sir Jony worked with the King before?

Sir Jony has supported projects involving Charles in the past, having designed the layout of the charter document for the royal’s Terra Carta or Earth Charter project launched in 2021. It was an ambitious Magna Carta-style charter to encourage the private sector to safeguard the planet by adopting sustainability and invest 10 billion dollars (£8 billion) in “natural capital”.

The two men also joined forces in 2021 to encourage students to create high-impact, low-cost solutions to help the world transition to a sustainable future under a project from the Terra Carta Design Lab initiative.