Back in 2014, graphic designer, writer and illustrator Belinda Ellis began a project to encapsulate Kiwis and kiwiana in a series of icons. From Sir Edmund Hillary to the weta, a jelly-tip iceblock to comedian Billy T, she simplified each image to a logo you could put on a t-shirt, or a fridge magnet.

{% gallery ‘iconz’ %}

Then Ellis, a former Designworks designer, teamed up with publisher Potton and Burton, and clothing and gifts company Mr Vintage and set about trying to turn her idea into a money-making venture. 

As many New Zealand-based designers find, it wasn’t easy. She talks about the ICONZ project in a newly-released short documentary by student filmmaker Thomasina Ferrall.