Wolfgang Joensson - Iconix: Exceptional Product Design

Praise for ICONIX In this age of accelerating complexity, it is a pleasure to be introduced to Wolfgangs beautifully illustrated bookto just settle back, smile, and be reminded of the forgotten, simple objects that we live with and enjoyed in the past, present, and future. Charles W. Pelly, former president of the Industrial Designers Society of America and founder of BMW-Designworks An amazing time travel machine! This inventory of the iconic objects of our daily life is a reference for all of us, but also for our design schools and their students. Maurille Larivire, cofounder and president of The Sustainable Design School, Nice, France This collection is a timely reminder that not everything has been digitally transformed. Talented human beings, designers who care passionately about the people who will use their designs, continue to inspire. Form-making that will become iconic the way these are is not easy; but worth learning how.

This is an exceptional guide in the quest. RitaSue Siegel, founder and partner, RitaSue Siegel Resources Iconix , what a perfect name for Wolfgangs new book!! Amazing how he has illustrated the everyday products we use that have become the symbol and representative image in our minds for a whole category of products, e.g., Carousel Projector, Apple MacIntosh, Walkman. Design is global. Dana Wolcott, adjunct professor and lead innovation coach at Rochester Institute of Technology

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Cover design by Wolfgang Joensson Print ISBN: 978-1-5107-3039-7 Ebook ISBN: 978-1-5107-3040-3 Printed in China Contents Acknowledgments It takes a village to write a book was the exasperated advice from my sister-in-law, Dr. Cindy Ott, a fine author and professor of American history. Her entertaining, yet instructive writing style has been a leading example for me. She is right to point out the necessity for help from others, which is why I would like to thank her and the following people for their support and help. First in line is Ian Ferris, a brilliant designer who came up with the idea that I should write and encouraged me on my way. Several of my designer friends have motivated and helped me choose the icons: Tim Toomey, Dieter Wanke, and Ronald Ihrig.

My business partner, Lutz Gebhardt, discussed with me and also contributed icon ideas. His unwavering support and enthusiasm is just one of those life forces everyone should have around. Having designed but never written before, I relied heavily on the patient support, editing, criticism, and overall inspiration of my muse and partner in life, Susan Kuntz. Her relentless will to drop everything and discuss my book was highly appreciated throughout the process. From the very early pages on, she has diligently worked with me on the content and made sure the result is presentable. Without her, this bookand my lifewould not be half as good.

The wonderful Anne-Laure Guiard-Schmidt has not only boosted my confidence in myself from the first day I met her and during the making of this book, but was also instrumental in finding the title. Jim Peterson and Jonathan Duff, both great writers, have helped me to understand writing better, and I thank them for their time and effort. John Flint, a former editor, has helped me tremendously by suggesting reading material to improve my writing and advising me on how to make my text better. He has also painstakingly edited everything. As a designer, I want to create all visuals by myself, but I am smart enough to know when to ask for help there, too. Urs Stemmler, a great transportation designer, helped me with ideas and criticism regarding some icons.

Angelika Scholz, as often in my past, once again gave me advice on typography. The architect Jon Schultz has enthusiastically helped from the start with tasteful advice to improve contents and design. My gratitude also goes to my editor, Nicole Frail of Skyhorse Publishing, who has diligently edited my writing, researched for verification, and corrected mistakes I made. You helped a great deal to make this book perfect. Last but not least, a big thank-you to my brilliant agent, Fran Black from Literary Counsel, who is the best agent any writer could have: supportive, highly professional, perfectly organized, and a lovely person. This is the village of my friends, and I consider myself lucky to have them.

Design Creates Memories Do you remember the first product you bought for yourself? That Sony Walkman for listening to your favorite music? Or the Swiss Army knife you got as a present from your uncle? Can you recall your mother making cake with the KitchenAid mixer? Such products keep us company from the cradle on. Some even find their way into our memoriesand our hearts. This book is about personal relationships with objects, but it is also about the impact designed objects can have on us as a society. Every one of them contains meaning: cultural, historic, social, or emotional. For example, when several German mineral sources get together and decide to have a unified bottle to be more visible on the market, this becomes important for public health, since their product competes with less healthy sugar-based soft-drink choices. To have a common package design makes their product more visible next to international sweet-drink giants.

What makes a product iconic is a common response based on individual feelings. Without emotions, there are no icons. Although emotions are personal, when many people react in the same way, their judgment provides a common ground for evaluation. I use the term iconic in a different way from linguists or semiologists. A strictly scientific approach to design is insufficient, for designers also care about emotions, and that can rarely be done in a systematic or predictable way. Nor can their approach be called purely artistic, for they also care about function, production, and how the product will find its way into the hands of a customer.

It is this duality that makes design such an exciting activity. Blending function and form demands an understanding of emotions as well as logic and science. Every serious designer aims to create objects that endure the test of time, become coveted and influential. Iconic products are even more valuableif not directly, then by the value they add to the brand they represent. SONY, for example, has never been more fashionable than during the high time of the Walkman, a product coveted by everyone, but particularly youngsters. Since I started to work as a designer, I have been interested in what makes design appealing, noteworthy, and, most of all, memorable.

There are many good ideas and pretty shapes, but it takes more to make an icon. It is fascinating to see how the designers on the following pages shaped our surroundings and improved our lives through the creation of innovative objects of beauty and desire. What Makes Products Iconic? Iconic products are memorable, and to be memorable, they have to stand out and be different. More than that: they have to be better than the rest. What makes products superior and anchors them in our minds is either an innovation or a content to which we can emotionally respond. With these two components, a product can become an icona representative of a category, of an era, or of a spirit.