Story of Icons

The definition of the icon, and what justifies an image as iconic, posits a question which has both driven and inspired artists, portraitists, architects, innovators, and figures of power and influence for millennia. From the original classical icons to the age of mass media, the internet, and the most potent symbols of modern times, icons provide an evocative visual concept, via which the identity of a culture might be revealed. The notion of the iconic is one which shifts across eras, and yet one which remains, in certain senses, static and unmoving. Nonetheless, it continues to fascinate, intrigue, and provide the utmost goal for creative to this day.

The word ‘icon’ is derived from the Ancient Greek eikenei, meaning ‘to seem to resemble’, and the classical world provided us with, arguably, the first iconic images to be widely distributed across civilisations. Over the centuries, both the word itself and its definition has shifted considerably, stretching from Byzantine paintings to the symbols we find on the screens of the latest smartphones.

Through the prism of 20th century art, the nature of the icon was imagined anew, with figures such as Mondrian and Rothko creating iconic images which defined a century of progression. Warhol later successfully redefined the icon, utilising repetition, familiarity, and instantly identifiable images, which took on new meaning within the context of his exhibitions and the ubiquity his work provided.

Modern philosophy, too, played a role in the defining of icons in contemporary life. Roland Barthes, the French writer and semiologist, presented an enduring idea of iconography in the mid 20th century, inferring the idea that an icon must not only closely resemble whatever it is signifying, but it must also be impactively recognisable, and symbolic of something greater than the sum of its parts. Barthes identified various icons of French identity, which ranged from recipes to fashion, and from habits to design, encouraging us to recognise the iconic as a part of everyday life and as a mirror via which we see the world and ourselves.

To design something truly and enduringly iconic is, without a shadow of a doubt, the utmost aim for the majority of creatives. However, knowing what will capture the public’s imagination, and ignite both consumer and industry passions, is something notoriously difficult to predict. In fact, many 20th century icons struggled at first to achieve their lofty status, and indeed fell, often disastrously so, at the first hurdle. The Helvetica font, a mastery of Swiss design, was roundly rejected and ignored at its first emergence in the early decades of the last century. However, as the landscape of design shifted around it, and its Bauhaus-inspired minimalism found an eager new audience, it went on to become the most iconic font, and a hugely influential design classic in its own right.

There are many who would convincingly argue that, in order for a design to gain iconic status, dividing opinion and facing opposition is an essential component for success.

La Prairie