vexillology

This magazine is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

frank, in The 6 finalists for Minnesota's new state flag

This is the current state flag for reference. Any they pick is a huge improvement IMO

https://sopuli.xyz/pictrs/image/f3de174f-2943-43a3-9dfb-96399756a72f.jpeg

thrawn21,
@thrawn21@lemmy.world avatar

Goodness, that is terrible, I see why they’re looking to replace it.

ThatOneKirbyMain2568, in [UPDATED] My fictional flag
@ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social avatar

I like the concept, but I have a few suggestions:

  • Maybe make the green a bit darker. I get that you're going for grass and a river, but that's conveyed with any green, and I think a dark green would go a lot better with the lighter blue.
  • As another commenter mentioned, the river would be better as a simple diagonal stripe. You don't need a complicated river shape to convey a river.
  • This may be limited by your drawing skill, but I think the emblem should be more complex. Right now, it's in this area where it's not simple enough (i.e., it's not just a flat, one-color shield) to match with the rest of the flag but it's not complex enough to really feel like an emblem. It stands out but doesn't quite have the complexity to warrant it, if that makes any sense.
  • The emblem might be better off in the middle, left, or upper left. Symbols on flags tend to go there instead of on the right, where it'll be flapping in the wind more.
sarmale, (edited )

Updated it a little😁https://lemmy.zip/pictrs/image/29f2cc6b-85d5-4444-be1c-df2cea45afcd.webpThe grass is more dark, I simplified the river, didnt made it a strip because I want it to convey an island. I moved the emblem to the left, someone else said to make it more simple, but I dont have ideas

ThatOneKirbyMain2568,
@ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social avatar

The new green and the emblem on the left are definitely improvements. While I get wanting to convey an island, I think you could still do that with a more geometric shape. Maybe a stripe that splits into a circle or diamond in the middle. If you're going to have a line going diagonally across the flag, I think it's best to have it be simple and geometric.

ThatOneKirbyMain2568, in Some U.S. territorial flag remakes
@ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social avatar

After I finished all of my U.S. state flag redesigns, I decided to take a stab at designing new flags for the territories! Here's the symbolism:

American Samoa

  • The triangular pattern is taken from the existing flag, just flipped to be more prominent when waving.
  • The red, white, and blue symbolize American Samoa's link to the United States.
  • The color arrangement—a field of red with a blue shape on the left and white symbols within the blue—is similar to that of the Samoan flag.
  • The war club and fly-whisk are symbols of Samoan leaders.

Guam

  • The blue field stands for the vast ocean surrounding Guam.
  • The red symbolizes the violent history of the island.
  • The two shapes are meant to resemble a slingstone and a sinahi necklace, both Chamorro symbols.
  • Yellow is used to represent the hope of a prosperous future and so that the center of the flag resembles islands in the sea.

Northern Mariana Islands

  • The blue once again represents the ocean.
  • The white slopes on the sides of the flag evoke the Mariana Trench, which lies near the Mariana Islands.
  • The latte stone in the center of the flag is a Chamorro symbol.
  • There are 14 stars for the 14 islands in the territory. The red and pink resemble that of the original flag's wreath, a symbol of the Carolinians.

Puerto Rico

  • The white stripes are now yellow to better symbolize Puerto Rico's Spanish history.
  • The rest of the symbolism is the same.

U.S. Virgin Islands

  • 'Murican colors represent 'Murica.
  • The Nordic cross alludes to the islands' former status as a Danish colony.
  • There are 3 stars for the 3 main islands in the territory.
Nevrome, in What are your thoughts on complexity in flag designs?
@Nevrome@lemmy.ca avatar

I think judging a flag’s clutteredness depends on the visual feeling rather than the amount of stuff found in it.

For example, the flag of my Canadian Province, New-Brunswick, doesn’t feel cluttered to me as opposed to the flag of the Seychelles. It does fit in your second bullet point though.

I tend to agree with you that simpler designs look great but many complex flags’ designs also do the job.

ThatOneKirbyMain2568,
@ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social avatar

It's definitely subjective. Case in point, I think the Seychelles' flag is great where as New Brunswick's is quite messy if still decent. The latter is helped by not going overboard on colors, though I think it'd be more cohesive if the ship followed the pattern that the lion and the water followed (single-colored design on single-colored background). The lion is yellow on red and the water is white on blue, but the ship is all over the place with red flags and a white, outlined sail.

GreyShuck, in What are your thoughts on complexity in flag designs?
@GreyShuck@feddit.uk avatar

I think that my criteria would be:

  • Is it distinctive at a casual glance at emoji size?
  • Is it distinctive on a misty horizon?
  • Is it realistic to daub 20 copies of it on to old sheets, cardboard banners and t-shirts in a hurry in a crowded basement somewhere?

If not, then it is not fulfilling the basic requirements of a flag. If it is, then it’s off to a good start and we can start arguing about aesthetics.

ThatOneKirbyMain2568,
@ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social avatar

Those are definitely important factors, especially distinctiveness at small size and at a distance. There are lots of red, white, and blue tricolors that only differ in some small, complicated symbol, making them difficult to distinguish even up close, much less from afar.

Jaettehjort, in Some U.S. territorial flag remakes
@Jaettehjort@lemmy.world avatar

Nice work! So much better than the existing flags, both the design and the well thought symbolism. Though Puerto Rico’s flag hardly needs changing IMO, it is already great as it is.

Jaettehjort, in The 6 finalists for Minnesota's new state flag
@Jaettehjort@lemmy.world avatar
Microw, in Trapezoids at the hoist side is a quite rare feature on flag, existing in the shadow of many triangles. What do you think about it?

I agree, triangles generally look better. The trapezoids always seem clumsy

stingpie, in Trapezoids at the hoist side is a quite rare feature on flag, existing in the shadow of many triangles. What do you think about it?

I’m no vexillologist, but I prefer the trapezoid. It means the flag can be constructed entirely out parallelograms. With a triangle though, you need to use an ugly concave pentagon.

ThatOneKirbyMain2568, in Trapezoids at the hoist side is a quite rare feature on flag, existing in the shadow of many triangles. What do you think about it?
@ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social avatar

While I prefer triangles, the trapezoids still look nice. And like you said, they make them more distinct from other flags.

FireTower, in What are your thoughts on complexity in flag designs?
@FireTower@lemmy.world avatar

Like with engineering, the fewer components the better. Of course each flag still needs to effectively relay it’s message.

I think Canada has a great example flag. It’s only used two colors, stripes, and one unique shape.

Also something to factor in is how unique is your flag. The Ivory Coast will forever be mistaken for Ireland. Both are simple but added detail could have avoided this.

zero_gravitas, in Trapezoids at the hoist side is a quite rare feature on flag, existing in the shadow of many triangles. What do you think about it?

I really like Kuwait’s flag. It’s bold, and it looks a bit 3D.

I don’t think it looks great when some other device is superimposed on the trapezoid like in the other two examples you give. I generally don’t like things superimposed on triangles either, though.

bionicjoey,

Plus the other two look a bit off-center

JustZ, in Trapezoids at the hoist side is a quite rare feature on flag, existing in the shadow of many triangles. What do you think about it?

I think one vexologist said to another “we should get rid of these triangles” and the other said “just the tip.” And now we have some trapezoids.

ThatOneKirbyMain2568, in My Maryland flag redesign (please don't crucify me)
@ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social avatar

Since I'm that one guy who doesn't like Maryland's flag, I tried to give it a redo when I was redesigning all of the US state flags. I took the Crossland and Baltimore banners and simplified them to make an (imo) better looking flag that alludes to the designs. There's even some extra symbolism in there: there are seven stripes since Maryland was the 7th state to ratify the Constitution and join the US.

nocturne213,

Having lived in Maryland, but not being from Maryland, I learned the only thing Old Liners love more than Old Bay is their flag.

DavidGarcia, in My Maryland flag redesign (please don't crucify me)

It’s a very good flag, but the original is way cooler. It’s a cool remnant from the era of the knights, changing it is like erasing history for no reason

ThatOneKirbyMain2568,
@ThatOneKirbyMain2568@kbin.social avatar

I'm definitely not advocating for changing the flag. If a flag is distinct and loved by the people it represents, then changing it would likely do more harm than good. That being said, I think the original flag is an overly counterchanged mess that looks decent only in the context of the mostly bad competition.

  • All
  • Subscribed
  • Moderated
  • Favorites
  • vexillology@lemmy.world
  • localhost
  • All magazines
  • Loading…
    Loading the web debug toolbar…
    Attempt #