Manhattan Life🗽 icons
New Amsterdam, 1625, was the first Dutch settlement in America, marking the origin of the city we now know as New York. Dutch, English, French… continued their wars over control of this strategic port, naming its streets as was common in old Europe (Wall, Canal, Broadway, William, Fulton…). But later, the New York we know today grew, and its streets and avenues transitioned from names to numbers, creating a more square and linear structure.
My personal Challenge
Back in 2013, I was given the great opportunity to live in New York for two years. I consider myself good at navigating, but during the first few weeks, I struggled to remember and identify the names of neighborhoods in Manhattan. Even though it’s a city easy to get around, I needed a reference point to know where I was. Thankfully, Google Maps saved me in moments of disorientation.
My trick there (as in all the cities I visit for the first time) was to create a mental map of Manhattan’s neighborhoods/zones, remembering them by their buildings or iconic areas. At the time, I missed having an app or resource on my iPhone5 that I could quickly and easily consult, something more adapted to my needs.
Now, as a UX/UI professional and a personal project, I’ve decided to offer my small solution: creating icons for Manhattan’s districts that can be used in future digital projects for tourists, agencies, new city residents, and more. These icons are open to anyone who wants to use them.
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The process
My project is set on the island of Manhattan, so I focused my research on gathering information about each district on the island and identifying what makes them unique, whether through landmarks, architectural areas, or other defining features.
I created the icons in Figma. I usually work in Illustrator, but I thought this was a good opportunity to try Figma. The icons are designed on an 8px grid, all following the same dimensions and line thickness.
- Financial District
It is the bustling financial center of the city. This area is filled with iconic landmarks like Ground Zero, skyscrapers, and the famous bull. However, I chose the Federal Hall as its foundation since it was the first U.S. Capitol. I created a hybrid with the flag displayed on the Wall Street Stock Exchange building and the hall.
- Tribeca
It’s a trendy area known for its former industrial buildings, many of which have been converted into residential lofts. There are several iconic buildings like the New York Mercantile Exchange, but I chose a popular tourist spot: the firehouse used as the headquarters in the movie Ghostbusters.
- Chinatown
The quintessential Chinatown, filled with restaurants, shops, and markets… and the famous Columbus Park. However, I needed to showcase something even more visually iconic. While Chinatown feels like a trip to China, most of the buildings retain a very New York aesthetic. Still, some stand out, like the Charles Schwab building on Canal Street, which has a fully Chinese-style design. I didn’t hesitate to use it as the icon.
- Soho
This neighborhood, known for its cast-iron buildings and cobblestone streets, is also a hotspot for trendsetters who gather in its luxurious restaurants and fashion boutiques. My choice for the creation of icons was one of those white buildings full of iron columns and large windows.
- Little Italy
The quintessential Italian neighborhood, with Mulberry Street as its main artery. Along it, you’ll find souvenir shops, bakeries, and, of course, many Italian restaurants. It’s made up of narrow streets and buildings where the first Italian immigrants settled. My icon focuses on these buildings, with their Italian restaurants on the ground floor.
- Lower East Side
It is an eclectic neighborhood full of rental apartments that mix with luxurious condos. Currently, it is a trendy area where young people go out to its bars. It was the first Jewish neighborhood, connecting Manhattan with Williamsburg in Brooklyn via its bridge, the Williamsburg Bridge. This was the main decision behind the creation of my icon, the bridge.
- Greenwich Village
In Greenwich Village, the epicenter of the 1960s countercultural movement, there are tree-lined streets filled with bustling cafés, bars, and restaurants. Among the red-brick houses and New York University buildings, you can find jazz clubs and off-Broadway theaters. One of its notable landmarks is Washington Square Park, and its iconic arch is chosen to represent the area.
- East Village
The East Village is famous for its vibrant nightlife, including traditional bars, music venues, and performance spaces. St. Mark’s Place, once the epicenter of the punk scene, now hosts trendy fast food spots and souvenir shops. One of these buildings was chosen for the creation of my icon.
- Chelsea
Chelsea is a mix of brownstones, low-rise apartment buildings, luxury skyscrapers, and bustling spots like the High Line. Buildings that were once factories have been transformed into art galleries and markets with specialty food shops and exclusive restaurants, such as Chelsea Market.
- Flatiron - Gramercy district
This commercial district, named after the iconic wedge-shaped Flatiron Building, is home to high-rise apartment buildings and office towers. It was only fitting that this building was chosen for its representation.
- Kip´s bay
The area along First Avenue is primarily occupied by institutional buildings of New York University and is situated around the bay. Today, the southern coast of Waterside Plaza is Stuyvesant Cove Park, a public park representative of the area.
- Hell’s Kitchen
This part of the city is also known as ‘Clinton’ or ‘Midtown West,’ and features relatively green streets. The Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood has many distinctive buildings and some iconic New York restaurants, which is why I chose the area’s architecture.
- Turtle bay
This area is home to famous skyscrapers like the Chrysler Building (my favorite building), which is in the Art Deco style, luxury shops on Fifth Avenue, Grand Central Terminal, and the United Nations headquarters. It is well-known for many businesses, including advertising firms on Madison Avenue, and residential skyscrapers.
- Midtown
The undisputed king of Midtown Manhattan is the Empire State Building, an Art Deco skyscraper. Its name derives from New York’s nickname, ‘The Empire State.’ It is one of the city’s icons, alongside others like the Chrysler Building and Rockefeller Center.
- Times Square
Times Square is an intersection of avenues in Manhattan, located at the corner of Broadway and Seventh Avenue. It received its current name from the offices of The New York Times, which were located in the One Times Square building.
- Upper West Side
In the Upper West Side is the Lincoln Center, which houses performing arts institutions such as the Metropolitan Opera and the New York City Ballet. Among the impressive apartment buildings on Central Park West is the American Museum of Natural History. The area also features stately brownstone houses.
- Upper East Side
The Upper East Side is a highly sophisticated residential area. In this beautiful neighborhood, classic red-brick buildings blend with high-rise structures. The Museum Mile is a bustling stretch of Fifth Avenue, next to Central Park, filled with cultural institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and El Museo del Barrio.
- Central Park
Bethesda Terrace and its fountain are two architectural features overlooking the southern shore of the lake in Central Park.
- Harlem
Harlem is at the northern end of Manhattan, known for its African American roots and jazz clubs. The neighborhood features a mix of 19th-century brownstones and modern skyscrapers. The main street, 125th Street, is home to the iconic Apollo Theater.
Testing
Once my research was complete, I had to face the ultimate test: finding out if real New Yorkers would recognize the icons and if they would work. So, I set out to conduct surveys to see if they understood my approach.
The survey went very well overall, and people understood the icons perfectly. However, there was an issue with the East Village; I wasn’t able to represent its streets in a more accurate way, leading to confusion with other similar icons, such as those for Hell’s Kitchen and Little Italy
Given these findings and knowing that the other icons had worked very well, I decided to modify some details about the East Village icon to make it more distinct and easier to identify, aiming to be more faithful to the buildings on St. Mark’s Place.
Future possibilities
🗽 Download here free icons. 🗽
