A visual brief on icon history
the
80s
The 80s belong
to the ancestors
They were black and white, as proper “old folks” should be. Flat and already sitting self-confident in their grids (well... most of them). Their “desktop metaphor” has stayed with us up till today! The outline took its toll on icon fashion, ruling for 20 years. Hard to believe, but some of these signs kept the same form from the 1st day of their lives...
1981
Dr David Smith,
a mathematician and Norm Cox, an artist united the powers of two, seemingly completely unrelated disciplines.
Invented by Smith, designed by Cox, it presented a square grid, simple looks, consistent style.
1983
Named after Steve Jobs'
daughter, Lisa was the
first personal computer
with a graphical user
interface aimed at a wide
audience of business
customers.
Lisa was a major project during that time and gathered almost one hundred people working on the design.
1984
Probably the most famous “art + programming marriage” happened in ‘82. For creating icons, Apple hired Susan Kare, a step they should never ever regret.
The kids were a lovely bunch of consistent siblings. You can freely say: pixel art in the purest form
1985
Something went a bit off the road when these were being prepared. Is there a grid? Well, yes. But it's hard to see.
Sometimes it's hard to see what they really mean, too... We shouldn’t be too harsh though. Beginnings are often bumpy.
1985
TOS introduces the new trend. What spacious desktops we will have from now on!
They start to gain some volume. Office drawers jump out of the screen, files multiply and the trash bin swells.
1985
We all know it’s a lot of fun to personalize our devices. But “user freestyle” doesn’t always end up as a coherent design...
Ladies and gentlemen, let us present: user customization! Amiga provides an interface with fully editable icons (meaning four colors and few sizes available).
1986
Even in the times when fashion was dictated more by technical abilities, strong individualism occurred. Some tried their own, different way.
So, why not color the outline instead?
1988
Still enough to have the eager user playing with “folder painting” for some time.
Apple didn’t give a full hand, they only gave one finger. As many as 15 colors available but it was ONLY colors.
1989
NeXTSTEP was founded by Steve Jobs. It was something new... With shaded and highly detailed icons it showed us an entirely new approach to icon design.
NeXSTEP icons were the first ones to be considered skeuomorphic. It’s obvious that a new era of icon design has begun!
First lessons learned, conclusions drawn. Colors and three simple dimensions put their roots down for good. A constant stream of technical improvements supports the evolution. Basic signs are overgrown with shadows and shades. Files, computers, pencils and trash bins toss and turn at different angles. Icons begin to climb the long stairs,
to the Dream
World of Realism.
90s
the
1990
Microsoft did their homework. We feel the grid, and it’s easy to see the icons come from one production line. Probably thanks to the very same Susan Kare, an icon in the icon design world.
Started with 16 colors The next versions, both Windows and OS/2, show a slow and steady evolution.
1991
With shades of grey and delicate accents, they present a less intrusive palette. Thanks to this all, the signs make a coherent package.
It takes more time for Mac to make the icons show their sides, but over time, they become convinced, and most of them turn isometric.
1993
The rest of the shades are matched, too, and the overall effect is vibrant and unique. Shame it’s only some of the icons. Apparently, consistency is still a hard nut to crack.
While everybody followed the basic trends, Geoworks shows a slight breakaway from the outline fashion. Images proudly shine with indigo edges.
1997
Apparently, it’s enough to slightly differ the angle and close each of them in a cube. And Voila! Original style despite the technical bonds.
Keeping the mainstream core idea, BeOS icons represent a somewhat different look.
1998
While struggling to make them float, IRIX forgot to get rid of the dots... BUT despite the rash, they have a very important feature: They are vectors.
The icons rise into the air. Everybody pushes it to the limit to add the illusion of space.
1999
The new invention of
a transparency mask mixed with isometry and perspective provides an icon salad of a hundred tastes.
A change is brewing... Something just pushes out of them, but can’t really get past the steely border of the outline.
1999
It’s hard to be an icon in times of the revolution...
The new century is soon to arrive, and they seem to shiver and be a bit shudder, dropping pixel-crumbs all around.
New millennium
realistic boom
and a “literal” craze reaches its peak. Finally, they made it! It all looks like real! What’s more - it’s hyper polished, spick-and-span and tip top. Shiny, blinky, glossy. Transparent, multi-layered, multi-shaded. Blurred and softened. It’s all “bigger, better, and MORE”.
2000s
the
2001
“Photo-illustrative icon style” smashes the idea of an icon being just a symbol. Aliasing is passé, so the edges can freely blur.
The pictures grow huge, have alpha channels and 8-bit transparency masks. What a splendor!
2001
Not so literally, but still striking. Here it seems that icons hit the Effects Jackpot.
Each of them created as a vector gets its beauty days in Photoshop later. Dressed up and with heavy make-up, they hit the desktop runway, spinning in all directions.
2007
Probably the most important representative of the “Icon Rococo Style”. Reached an enormous size and deserves a “Detail Master” degree.
We’re now so proud to have a whole collection of glittering pieces on our glossy screens.
2007
Once we got the bug, it spread easily through our global village.
The whole world strives to reproduce... the world. Apple with its IOS allows us to carry the semi-realistic little pictures with us everywhere we go.
2008
Google rushed to summon a couple of friends (including, among many others, HTC, LG, Motorola and Samsung).
An Open Handset Alliance was born with Android as the main operating system. Since then, we have all lived our mobile lives with the life-mimicking icons.
After the deadly race, the exhausted Icons seemed to come to their senses. They start a journey back in time to discover their roots and their real meaning. They slowly undress out of their costumes and reveal their natural shapes. The realistic era is over. Once again in the history
it appears that
less is more.
the
2010s
2010
Microsoft made a revolutionary move releasing Windows Phone 7. Out of the blue, the icons became flat. They also went white and received a uniform background.
A serious makeover that opened the gates to new design paths.
2013
Mobile apps fuelled the icon design industry. Despite the technical abilities, “flatenization” seems to take over.
Gradients and shadows are still lingering, but they have a rather shy nature in these plain circumstances.
A timeless system
After over 30 years of experimentation, learning from the mistakes of others’ and our own, experienced on the battlefield of creating icons, there came a brilliant system. Combining science and art, FUTURAMO Icons provide an esthetic design, incredible consistency for ALL the signs, along with almost unlimited flexibility. What is crafted you adjust, no more room for mistakes. As simple as three clicks.
2015
Universality. Files and calendars, smileys and animals. For each sign, you’ll find millions of possibilities. FUTURAMO Icons are just fantastically adjustable. Colors, styles, formats, sizes. Whatever is needed.
Easy to use. Click or tap and they will all follow. It takes seconds. The system is clear and intuitive, a pure pleasure to use it.
Thousands of signs. Since 2007, the icon base has been continuously growing and doesn’t plan to stop. Because we follow our strict principles, the new arrivals always match the previous ones!
Aesthetics. It’s not only about tech stuff. They are simply pretty! Matching any project you pick. Go on and give them a try :-)
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