I feel like the drive for iconicism is a holdover of our confused, suburban, car-centric, Modernist past. That's why we have so many starchitects now. Everyone's trying to design "iconic" buildings. It's individualistic. We need humility and authenticity, not attention hunger and branding. Cities aren't brands. They're real places where people have to live. I actually don't even like the Sydney Opera House. Instead of people thinking about the actual city when you mention Sydney, they just think of that one building. Same goes for Seattle and Toronto. I'd much rather have 50 "normal" buildings than one "iconic" building.
People from places like New York and London don't get it. They seem stuck in that old mindset a little bit. Here's a perfect example of that:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/18/re...anted=all&_r=0
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