What Makes a Product Design Iconic?

This is part 1 of a series of videos that will explore how to create iconic industrial design. This first video defines what makes a design iconic. The next videos explore in-depth ways to create iconic designs....or at the very least, designs that are distinctive and recognizable.

It's incredibly difficult to make a truly iconic product. They only come a few times per decade. While it's unlikely that our products will ever reach the level of icon, it's still a noble pursuit to strive towards. Even if we fall short, we can still create designs that are distinctive and category-defining.

John Mauriello has been working professionally as an industrial designer since 2010. He is an Adjunct Professor of industrial design at California College of the Arts.

[bananawitchcraft]

I initially got into design because I figured I couldn't make a career in art, but I grew to really appreciate it on its own terms. I was a visual communications major. Due to disability I dropped out of school and never joined the workforce, but I still have a love for design and this channel reminds me of that.

[raffiminasian]

Great video and love the series here. Your videos are always clear, well-stated, and smartly insightful. I do want to call out one thing about the original ipod design. The scroll wheel was taken from a previously well known and visually respected icon, the exposed speaker. The look of that speaker (cone, center mound, trim) conveyed high fidelity. This visual was critically important because the ipod had no "voice". As a sound-based product it needed a "speaker" to visually call attention to the idea that it could generate music. Even the proportions of the ipod were based on former stereo speaker boxes with the big woofer at the bottom. The ipod itself cribbed off the idea of iconic sound imagery, which on the day it was released already made it iconic.

[rocketskids]

About the Cybertruck... my opinion on the design changed rather dramatically when I learned two things: 1. The design was largely a result of the limitations of stamping stainless steel. 2. The aerodynamics are surprisingly good. I still think it's fugly, but I can now appreciate why it is the way it is.

[fongangamassana]

Th point about consideration for functionality leading to iconic form is so good . There’s something similar into motorcycling world, the Suzuki HAYABUSA. It’s looks are and have been polarizing since it’s release but they’re definitely iconic, at least partly because they serve a purpose, aerodynamics. The bike’s engine was big but nothing out of the ordinary for the time ( it was actually pretty simple and reliable, making it a great tuning platform) . It’s the wind tunnel tested fairing and body of the bike that made it so fast ( so fast it forced the gentleman’s agreement between the four big Japanese motorcycle makers) and also great for long rides . And the engineers did a great job making the bike super stable are good handling . It was so comfortable and handled so well you could just bop it around town .
So yeah, sometimes great function leads to iconic form .

[hokfmkd]

Loved the video! Although one small note about Jimi Hendrix -- he actually wasn't left-handed. He turned his guitar around simply because he could play chord shapes more easily with his right hand, his dominant hand, than he could with his left.

[captainzoll]

I think fundamentally, a design achieving iconic status is a result of being both distinctive and prolific, the latter of which depends a decent amount on the practical function of the product.

the Lancia Stratos Zero, despite changing the direction of automotive styling for the next 20 or so years, is not all that well known outside of enthusiast circles, likely because it was only a one-off prototype.
the Lamborghini Countach, however, was also designed by Marcello Gandini, but the design was "diluted" onto a producible road car which not only sold in a significant quantity, but was also the fastest production car in the world at the time, thanks to its engineering, and likely because of these factors, a lot more people have become aware of it, thus making it arguably more iconic than the Lancia.

in a similar vein, you mention the original BMC mini, and it's certainly an Iconic shape, but how often do you hear of people talking about the Austin Maxi or Landcrab? All three were designed by Alec Issigonis, they all share the same basic aesthetic and mechanical design, albeit scaled up from the mini, but these two come off to the average person as "a bit weird".
it seems as though what really kept the mini going was the practical merits of its size, no one else really made a car as small, so it became the immediate choice for anyone who wanted a cheap, small car.
thus, even when the other two models became outdated, the mini continued with its old appearance by virtue of being "cheap", until it passed the threshold of "old" to "classic", being divorced from contemporary styling.

sorry to just bang on about cars, but it's my ""field of expertise"".

[sweetfruit]

Your channel is one of the best channels I have ever found

[Leoine]

I hoped to find a thread of more iconic designs here. I'll start one. Adding to the Mini, Stratocaster, and iPod, maybe one could say - the Jeep, the iPhone, the acoustic guitar. Or the classic grand piano.

I think some designs, like the last two, are SO iconic that we forget they were even designed and didn't always exist.

Perhaps literal icons can also be considered iconic. The play/pause buttons, and the power button made up of I and O, for example. The floppy disc also became the universal save icon.

Awesome video as always, really got me thinking :)

[erikzherrllo]

Me an industrial design engineer every single time I’m in class: yeah… *iconic* 💅

[susan]

Fantastic to see this - and that there is going to be a series! Thanks so much.

[LiiMuRi]

IMHO iconic as a term is retrospective. The Cybertruck can't be iconic, it isn't even released yet. It may become iconic over time, or it may not.

[happysmash]

I can see how the analysis of this quote can be applied to music too! Branding as well, among other things. Great video, and very applicable. I like it a lot as someone interested in many different subjects, since the points here seem to apply to all sorts of other things as well.

[cgirl]

In all likelihood Ted Sorensen wrote the "ask not" lines and the vast majority of the entire speech. Of course Kennedy had input and editing but Sorensen should be credited with writing it. It wouldn't be the same with another speaker and Kennedy should be given credit for being such a good communicator. Good video.

[Helperbot-]

Volvos are both iconic and im very good at recognizing them, i can no joke spot an old volvo immediately from just seeing a bit of it in the corner of my eye

[nadat]

Aside from the content of the video being insightful and interesting, I gotta say that the overall structure of the video and how you gave different points and gave examples and explanation on those examples is a very very smooth experience for the audience. I couldn’t help but notice how well your point came across after you also gave your counter argument when you spoke about what makes designs not iconic and after that delivering a clear conclusion of the content shown in the video. You have clearly done your research and know how to present information extremely well! You’ve earned a subscribe my friend!

[MaticTheProto]

There is indeed another very angular car that has become iconic: The G Class

[johnbehneman]

THANK YOU SO MUCH. I AGREE WITH YOU 100%. I LEARNED IN DESIGN SCHOOL. THAT GREAT DESIGN IS TIMELESS. AN EXAMPLE OF THIS IS THE 1932 FORD.

[ruphelan]

Your voiceover is very clear and well done

[koi]

12:02 you could've mentioned the DeLorean, its very iconic, and interestingly, it wasn't iconic before the back to the future movies. once again pushing your point about the importance of marketing.

[tomwang]

Love this topic. Can't wait to see the next video.