ALT When Google Design Went URL to IRL Rob Giampietro is Head of Creative at Notion in New York. Previously at Google on the Insight＋Innovation, Google AI/RMI, and Material Design teams, Rob’s key projects included the first SPAN Design & Technology global conferences, an overhaul of the Google Fonts directory, and a Google-branded customization of Material Design. Here — as part of our celebration of a decade of Material Design — Rob delves into the origins of the SPAN conference that helped define the design identity of Google, and explores how creating unique cultural events for a global audience brought Material to life in a whole new way.

ALT Curiosity, Flexibility, and Expression Material is very unique in the sense that, at its core, it represents a three-way partnership between Google, a community of makers both inside and outside of Google, and end users. As Material evolved, we started hearing from makers that they wanted even more flexibility: everything from increased accessibility features, to — most commonly — the ability to set specific components' sizes.

ALT Material Design Eras: Zach Gibson

ALT Material Design Eras: Dieter Bohn

ALT Material Design Eras: Christian Robertson

ALT Material Design Eras: Lynn Jepsen

ALT When FORM Brought Screen to Stage Paul Schlacter is a senior designer for Google’s Search Design System. He joined Google in 2014 and helped launch FORM and design.google; worked on Google Design and SPAN for the next four years; then joined Corp Eng to help improve internal tools and branding. Here — as part of our celebration of a decade of Material Design — Paul remembers the creative beginnings of FORM, Google’s first design conference, which took the dynamic principles of Material Design and presented them live in San Francisco.

ALT Material Eras: M2 Material 2 allowed us to go deeper and to develop the system even further. Behind the scenes, we were bringing together two different worlds and skill sets: design and engineering. It was important — and challenging! — to develop a shared language. Our designers were pushing the boundaries of what good design could look like at scale, and that meant asking for a lot from the kick-ass team of engineers I had assembled.

ALT Material Eras: Exploring the evolution of Google’s open-source design system. It’s been a decade since Material made its global debut. Five influential Googlers reflect on the ever-evolving design system that has shaped how we interact with our devices — and how they interact with us.