The "mona Lisa": The Sophistication of a World Icon

The "Mona Lisa": The Sophistication of a World Icon

Around the world her presence questions, intrigues, and fascinates. Who could she be? Madonna? Cher? Brittney Spears? None has perfected that image than Leonardo Da Vinci's "Mona Lisa." Twentieth Century icons have attempted this feat, but none will last centuries like Ms. Lisa. From music to movies to modern day art, she has survived it all, but what makes this simple woman last all this time? "Mona Lisa" is easily recognized and "embraced" by contemporary culture. In the 20th and 21st Centuries we see iconic images which are also recognizable, like the Mona Lisa, that symbolize love, power, and struggle.

Just as Mona Lisa's face has been used to sell everything from the "idea" of art to pasta sauce, "Winged Nike" has created a phenomenon as well. This Greek image has continued through the sports company Nike. The Nike Swoosh was developed from this statue and over the years has attached great people, moments, and success to its image. A simple stroke of a brush has created the most recognizable label for athletics which signifies power and strength. Michael Jordan, Lebron James, and Venus Williams have created and given iconic status to the Nike Swoosh. It has not only become an image, but a culture as well. We will never hear the saying, "Just do it" and not attach it to the Swoosh again.

Throughout the 20th and 21st Centuries we can see simple images and relate them to great defeats and emotions. A ribbon can be used to wrap a gift or hold pigtails in a little girl's hair, but with a safety-pin and a certain color it encompasses much more. Red, pink, and yellow are not just colors on a ribbon, but representations of AIDS, breast cancer, and remembrance of an American hero. Wearing the ribbon is iconic in many ways. It holds so many meanings and emotions to the person who wears it. It