Tell Us About Style Icons - An Idiosyncratic Analysis

I am fortunate to have joined a talented group of bloggers for the Global Writing Challenge. Each month, we write about a very broadly defined topic, and the responses are quite varied. The newly revised group includes Deb’s World, Marsha in the Middle, Rosie Amber, Suzy Turner, Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever after Again, Atypical 60, and me.

This month, Suzy selected the topic of Style Icons...and I decided to go in a bit of an unusual direction by not focusing solely on the female celebrities that are the typical ones we hear when discussing style icons.

I developed style icon categories are not the usual ones you see, but they represent some of the places I've found style inspiration that feel iconic to me.

For fun, I decided that I would share common style icons (as revealed by Google's Gemini AI) and my personal icon in each category. This will create a Family Feud-like "survey says" popular answer in comparison to my own choices. My choices don't necessarily represent my own personal style - I have selected ones that I just find iconic, regardless of whether I share or aspire to their style or not.

I hope you will play along by thinking about your own style icon choices in these categories.

1 - Female Celebrity Style Icons

Let's start with the classic category of women's style icons - female celebrities. Looking to these traditional style icons is an extremely common approach for helping define one's own personal style. Realistically, there are probably a million of them, so it's interesting to see what rises to the top in our "Survey says" list:

Result of AI prompt: "Who are female celebrity style icons?" - Part 1

Result of AI prompt: "Who are female celebrity style icons?" - Part 2

Result of AI prompt: "Who are female celebrity style icons?" - Part 3

My choice of female celebrity style icon:

Tilda Swinton! Whether it's fashion shoots, red carpet looks, or street wear, her style is varied while remaining personal and distinctive. Her outfits are far more eerie, architectural, and "high fashion" than my own style, but I admire her willingness to experiment and how playfully she creates so many odd personas and looks that all say "Tilda."

2 - Male Style Icons

I think men's style is an under-utilized resource for women. Who are the icons the AI has identified?:

Result of AI prompt: "Who are male style icons?" - Part 3

My choice of male style icon:

Alan Cumming! A few weeks ago, I saw a fashion photo shoot he did (which of course I could never locate again!) that blew me away, and it cemented his style icon status in my mind. His use of outrageous prints (most recently plaid due to the character he plays on The Traitors), effective use of make-up, and the overall masterful combinations and shifts between masculine and feminine elements are standouts. My own style is much more staid than this, but I find the juxtaposition of different styles in his outfits quite inspiring.

3 - Fictional Character Style Icons

We don't need to limit ourselves to real people when considering style influences! Many fictional characters have unique styles that are inseparable from their personality. Let's see what the "survey says":

Result of AI prompt: "Who are fictional character style icons?"

My choice of fictional character style icon:

The Mad Hatter from the Alice in Wonderland universe! I have a real fondness for the Hatter from the 1951 Disney animated film version of Alice (the mix of green tones is amazing), but the iconic version is of course the John Tenniel version that appeared in the original books. And the way the oversized stovepipe hat itself has come to stand-in for the character is a testament to the Hatter's iconic style. Though I do not routinely dress in a menswear-on-women fashion or with a light/dark academia aesthetic, I do like to include these elements in my outfits from time to time, and the whimsical way that these styles are represented in the Mad Hatter speaks to me.

Source: John Tenniel, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

4 - Works of Art Style Icons

I left this category intentionally vague since the artists themselves and their creations can both be great sources of style inspiration. The AI identified these for us:

Result of AI prompt: "Who are works of art style icons?" - Part 1

Result of AI prompt: "What are works of art style icons?" - Part 2

My choice of work of art style icon:

The paintings of Henri Matisse! I first fell in love with his Goldfish painting, but quickly I became a fan of pretty much his entire oeuvre. The vivid colors and prints, the sense of joy, the expressive and decorative qualities, and the modern and graphic nature of the artwork make my heart sing.

Source: Francesco Bini, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Francesco Bini, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Francesco Bini, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Henri Matisse's art style is so distinctive that it's easy to imagine things painted in that style. I asked the Wix image AI to create a painting of a "rabbit in the style of Henri Matisse," and here were the first four options. They are nice (my favorite is the upper left with the forward-facing ear) but don't quite capture the Matisse colors.

Source: Wix image AI

I followed that with a request for a "rabbit in the bold and colorful style of Henri Matisse" and got these four, of which the upper right image is my favorite. I guess getting the full-on Matisse look is harder than it seems!

Source: Wix image AI

5 - Plant Style Icons

Many plants have a distinctive and dramatic appearance, so I figured there were some style icons in this category. Our "survey says" results are:

Result of AI prompt: "What are plant style icons?"

My choice of plant style icon:

The rose! She is a classic style icon that everyone recognizes, but she comes in so many colors, shapes, and moods that you can never tire of her. People rightly dedicate their entire lives to her endless beauty. My own style is not this delicate, formal, or feminine, but I love how each individual rose looks like its own character with its own personality - a reminder of the importance of authenticity and the value of self-expression in personal style.

Missouri Botanical Gardens - October 2017

Los Angeles Arboretum - December 2017

Los Angeles Arboretum - December 2017

And last but not least...

6 - Animal Style Icons

The astounding array of shapes, sizes, colors, and forms among our animal cousins are a great source of style inspiration. Top style icons according to the AI include:

Result of AI prompt: "What are animal style icons?"

My choice of animal style icon:

The kingfisher family! Bold, brilliant, sharp, attention-grabbing, distinctive...the kingfisher is a major style icon. The raised crest feathers give the kingfisher a rock-and-roll edge to their colorful look. Let's take a look at just a few of the 100+ kingfishers (this includes kookaburras as well) in the world.

First, the three species appearing in North America (I have seen these three in the wild):

Belted Kingfisher: North America

Source: Judy Gallagher, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Green Kingfisher: Southern Texas/Arizona through South America

Source: Félix Uribe, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Ringed Kingfisher: Southern Texas through South America

Source: Dario Sanches, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

And a few kingfishers living elsewhere (that I long to see in the wild):

Common Kingfisher: Europe, Asia, North Africa

Source: Frank-2.0, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

White-Throated Kingfisher: Turkey & eastern Mediterranean, Middle East, India, Asia

Source: Satdeep Gill, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Collared Kingfisher: Middle East, Asia, Australia

Source: JJ Harrison, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Malachite Kingfisher: Sub-Saharan Africa

Source: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Black-Backed Dwarf Kingfisher: India, Asia

Source: Pkhun at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Check out what other bloggers have to say about style icons:

Debbie: Over the years Debbie has discovered her own style and has named it as 'Joyful Original'.

Marsha: Marsha has struggled through the years with defining her style.  Maybe that’s because she has so many style icons!

Rosie: Rosie is talking about garden styles.

Suzy: Suzy writes about true style icons, from rebellious women in trousers to fictional witches who dress like themselves, trends be damned.

Leslie: Leslie has never thought of herself as a fashionista by any means but we all have a certain flair about the clothes we wear, the home we create, the life we live.  Check out what has most impacted her sense of style.

Catherine: Her post topic is a surprise!

Do you have any personal style icons that influence your own style? Were there any "iconic" individuals in any of the categories that you thought were missing from the AI's "survey says" lists? What makes someone/something "iconic" to you?

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