In the most recent Vexilloid Tabloid, we announced a design challenge: Ignoring the political near-impossibility of change...simply from a DESIGN perspective, how could the US flag be improved? Readers were (and still are!) encouraged to send proposals to editor@portlandflag.org, to be discussed at our next meeting. Here are two proposals readers have sent in so… Continue reading Improving the Design of the US Flag
An interview with Ing. Petr Exner of the Czech Flag Data Center Petr Exner runs FLADAC, the Flag Data Center (SVI, the Středisko vexilologických informací) in the Czech Republic. The Center maintains the website vexi.info, which includes a giant online database of thousands upon thousands of Czech municipal flags. In 2005 the International Federation of Vexillological Associations… Continue reading Czech Municipal Flags
Jeppe and Birger Morgenstjerne of the Danish design agency Ferdio recently released an extensive set of beautiful vexillological infographics entitled Flag Stories. These have attracted, deservedly, considerable attention around the web, including that of Linda Poon of The Atlantic's Citylab. In her article What's in a Flag's Design? she asked our very own Ted Kaye… Continue reading Ted Kaye on Flag Stories
BDN Maine published an update today on the flag design contest currently underway for a new flag for Portland, Maine. It includes 84 (!) proposed designs from "around 40 designers". Judges will now select finalists from this list to be voted on by the public. Here they are in a handy table. (See the article… Continue reading 84 Designs Proposed for Portland, Maine
A quick update from Ted: As you know, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is engaged in city flag redesign. http://www.milwaukeeflag.com/ I will be heading there in two weeks to help guide the 5-person jury selecting the finalists. The organizer, graphic designer Steve Kodis, has created very active social channels: http://www.facebook.com/Greatertogether http://www.twitter.com/TogetherMKE http://www.facebook.com/milwaukeeflag http://www.twitter.com/MilwaukeeFlag I’m sure I will have… Continue reading Ted Kaye Headed to Milwaukee
We were reminded by our friends at VIBE that today marks the birthday of the flag of Hong Kong, adopted 4 April 1990 by the Seventh National People's Congress in Beijing. More than just a city flag, of course, it is officially the "regional flag of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China"… Continue reading Happy Birthday, Hong Kong Flag
In a surprise announcement today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced revisions to the Canadian flag "to bring it more in line with international standards": It has come to my attention that due to our garish and outdated 1960s-era maple leaf flag, many Canadians and would-be Canadians are not sufficiently appreciative of our glorious colonial past and continuing subjecthood to… Continue reading Canada Rejoins the Club
Kazutaka Nishiura has kindly uploaded to YouTube a number of videos of talks and ceremonies from last year's 26th International Congress of Vexillology in Sydney, Australia. You can access the playlist here, or view them below. Opening ceremony Edward B. (Ted) Kaye, Fiji's New Flag: A Work in Progress Nozomi Kariyasu, The History of Japanese Service… Continue reading Videos from ICV26
As a sad addendum to our piece on the Toronto city flag (in VexTab #47), here is an image of the flag covering the casket of former mayor Rob Ford as he lies in repose in City Hall. Traditions vary from city to city, and the use of the city flag as a casket flag… Continue reading City Flags and Funerals
Those interested in the history of vexillology have a nice online resource in the form of issues of NAVA News dating back to the 1960s. (NAVA is the North American Vexillological Association, founded 1967.) In the December 1969 issue, a membership questionnaire appears (along with a listing of the names, affiliations, and addresses of all 80… Continue reading Sphragistics and Sigillography
Portland Flag Association 