Gitanes For a generation of nicotine-addicted English Francophiles, the Gitanes sans filtre cigarette will always be the epitome of cool; as smooth in image as it is rough on the throat. A large part of the attraction has always been the enigmatic figure of a gypsy dancer wreathed in smoke on the distinctive blue packet. Although it might also have had something to do with the plethora of French film stars pictured with them, not least a young Brigitte Bardot reclining in a Breton jersey with one dangling seductively from her fingers.
Gitanes is a great example of a design that can be called ‘quintessential’; it’s quintessentially French, with a particular cool allure and style all of its own. For those who smoke them (or pose with them), the design is a statement that says one likes life unfiltered, jazz-scored and a little bit Left Bank. No wonder Bowie was a famous fan and Paul Weller posed on the cover of The Face slipping a pack into his jacket pocket. Like all really powerful brands, it is a signpost for values we ascribe to it and which it in turn inspires. Every individual element of the pack has a particular Gallic flavour. The bold slanting typography. The moody illustration of the Gypsy looks like a classic poster image, in the manner of Cassandra. The thick cigarettes and square shape of the box nod to a ‘have to be different’ Frenchness. None of these alone would make for an ‘iconic’ pack, but in their beautiful combination they look, well, just right. It’s a very feminine design, holding a pretty masculine ‘hardcore’ product. 52
As a design lesson, perhaps one might say that a brand can ‘own’ something as generic as colour; the particular blue, with its light and shade, can only be Gitanes. I believe Luc Besson used it as inspiration for the design of a room in one of his films. That’s testament to a design that evokes a spirit, rather than merely proclaims a brand, which is arguably a more powerful achievement than being simply distinctive. It’s just a shame they don’t taste as good as they look. SA