Probe
Prescribe
Brief TBM Flag
Progress
Present
Research Book Collaborators:
Joel Burden
TBM Briefing
The original briefing brough a few things to mind that I could use in my response to the brief. The briefing was a useful opportunity to be briefed by a professional designer.
You won’t be using Great Britain anymore. If Scotland leave, the term Great Britain will not be in use anymore. This means, no more Team GB, or any iteration of the word British. The 3 countries will be known as the United Kingdom.
Existing Flag Design
I wanted to be informed about the origins of the original Union Flag. If I understand it’s history I will be able to understand where to take it, with a view to either respond to the evolution or revolution of the flag.
Crosses
Union Flag
A saltire is defined as a diagonal cross as a heraldic ordinary or as incorporating a motif based on a saltire cross.
The Union Flag is the flag of Great Britain which includes the countries Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
St. George’s Cross
St. Andrew’s Saltire
Representing Saint George the Saint of England. The flag is used for England and is on the Union Flag.
St. Andrews saltire is flag of Scotland and is represented on the Union Flag.
St. Patrick’s Saltire
St. David Cross
The Union Flag
The flag of St. Patrick is represented in an altered form on the Union Flag. The Saltire is not the flag of Northern Ireland but is used to represent the Saint of Northern Ireland. There is no official flag for Northern Ireland.
This is the saltire of St. David is the cross of Wales. This is not their national flag and is not represented on the Union Flag.
The union flag is made up of the Saint’s cross and saltires from England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Wales is omitted from the flag The Union Jack is it’s name for Naval use.
Anatomy
The Union Flag, or Union Jack, is the national flag of the United Kingdom. It is so called because it combines the crosses of the three countries united under one Sovereign - the kingdoms of England and Wales, of Scotland and of Ireland (although since 1921 only Northern Ireland has been part of the United Kingdom). The flag consists of three heraldic crosses. The cross of St George, patron saint of England since the 1270’s, is a red cross on a white ground. After James I succeeded to the throne, it was combined with the cross of St. Andrew in 1606. The cross saltire of St Andrew, patron saint of Scotland, is a diagonal white cross on a blue ground. The cross saltire of St Patrick, patron saint of Ireland, is a diagonal red cross on a white ground. This was combined with the previous Union Flag of St George and St Andrew, after the Act of Union of Ireland with England (and Wales) and Scotland on 1 January 1801, to create the Union Flag that has been flown ever since. The Welsh dragon does not appear on the Union Flag. This is because when the first Union Flag was created in 1606, the Principality of Wales by that time was already united with England and was no longer a separate principality. The Union Flag was originally a Royal flag. When the present design was made official in 1801, it was ordered to be flown on all the King’s forts and castles, but not elsewhere. It is today flown above Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and Sandringham when The Queen is not in residence. The Royal Arms of Scotland (Lion Rampant) is flown at the Palace of Holyroodhouse and Balmoral when The
Queen is not in residence. On news of a Royal death, the Union Flag (or the Royal Arms of Scotland (Lion Rampant) where appropriate) is flown at half-mast. The Royal Standard is never flown at half-mast, as the Sovereign never dies (the new monarch immediately succeeds his or her predecessor). The flying of the Union Flag on public buildings is decided by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport at The Queen’s command. The Union Flag is flown on Government buildings on days marking the birthdays of members of the Royal Family, Commonwealth Day, Coronation Day, The Queen’s official birthday, Remembrance Day and on the days of the State Opening and prorogation of Parliament.
Source: http://resources.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/geography/unionjack5.html & http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/Symbols/UnionJack.aspx
The reason Wales is not on the Union Flag
BBC Website The BBC website has put a lot of information on the website regarding the implications of Scotland leaving the Union. I have been reading up on some of the potential effects and considered how it will effect my future design.
Flag In Context
I decided to get some images of the flag in context to get an understanding of how a redesign my change the face of the United Kingdom.
Tat
The Union Flag notoriously finds its way on to a range of tatty objects with the endorsement of the patriotic public. I understand it’s relevance in our culture, but I personally feel that there should be some regulation in it’s use.
Culture Union flag appears on a range of cultural items. If it were massively changed how would these images be remembered and would they lose their relevance to future generations.
Olympics The Olympics is an integral part of British patriotism how would this change with the loss of Scotland. Interestingly the most recent kit was rendered in all blue...
Art Art has a big impact on the union flag, it is often rendered in a range of different ways, and often painted in schools by children. This must be considered in the redesign.
Flag Re-design
I decided to get some images of the flag in context to get an understanding of how a redesign my change the face of the United Kingdom.
Hirst Damien Hirst’s version of the Union Flag for the Olympic opening ceremony in London. Very interestingly uses the form of the cross to give resemblance to the flag.
CPB The government is drawing up contingency plans for a redesign of the Union Jack in the case of a ‘Yes’ vote in the referendum on Scottish independence in 2014. The Central Office of Information, the government’s communications body, has asked design companies to develop a version of the Union Jack that doesn’t include the blue of the Scottish Saltire. Options under consideration include a ‘Euro Jack’ based on a combination of the Union Jack and the EC flag, a ‘Multi Jack’ using a rainbow background and a ‘Cheap’ or ‘Broke Jack’ using just one colour. The Union Jack or Union Flag as it is more properly known is made up of the English Cross of St George, the Irish Cross of St Patrick and the Scottish Cross of St Andrew or the Saltire. It first appeared in its current form in 1801. The COI’s brief is to consider alternatives to the cross of St Andrew. The most obvious response was to replace the cross of St Andrew with the black and yellow cross of St David, representing Wales. (1) Hitherto Wales was represented by the English Cross of St George. Another possibility is not to replace the cross of St Andrew at all, creating a ‘Scot Free Jack’ (2). An alternative might be to re-place it with another icon from the Celtic fringe – the Standard of Cornwall, the black andwhite cross of St Piran forming the ‘Corn Jack’(3). A fourth option being considered is replacing the blue of St Andrew with red. This would create a one colour Union Jack or ‘Broke Jack’ to save on printing costs in these straightened times. (4) More controversially, the Union flag could be made to reflect modern multi-cultural Britain by using a rainbow background in place of Scottish blue. (5) However the ‘Multi Jack’ may have production problems. And in a move bound to infuriate Euro sceptics, a ‘Euro Jack’ has been considered in which the Scottish blue (Pantone reference 280) is replaced by the light blue of the Flag of Europe (CMYK 100,80) and gold stars. (6) “We don’t know what the result of the Scottish referendum will be. If they decide to leave the Union, how can we retain
them on our flag? If that does happen, rather than an ending we could see this as a chance to recast or rebrand Britain,” said Stephen Bell creative director of London based brand design agency Coley Porter Bell. He added: “This was a fascinating project. It forced us to look at the nature of Britishness and what Britain is likely to become in the future. We could have started afresh with a completely new design but chose evolution over revolution. Each of these routes has its advantages, each has its draw backs,“ he said.
Guardian Union Flag Contest The Guardian opened up a contest in order to give the general public a chance to design the new Union Jack. Here were some of the responses.
Bruce Mau Design
The brief reminded me of a branding campaign executed by Bruce Mau design. I thought revisting this particular brief would give me an idea of how to implement my new flag, and give me a source of stimulus for the revolution of the Flag and national identity.
What if Canada had a redesign? Studio 360, an art’s and culture radio show, approached Bruce Mau Design to redesign Canada. Instead of redesign the flag, Bruce Mau decided the problem was that people do not know Canada enough. The campaign is a response to this. I think the campaign for Canada is extremely successful. In terms of a campaign the visuals work to active a views interaction, and they work to inform also. The beauty of this redesign is the fact that it is not a redesign at all, but a repackaging of well established visual identity, the flag. I feel this is something that I would like to acheive with the breif I have been given. I feel that the flag must be evolved slightly, but an innovative application and context must be given to the new flag in order to activate a positive out of the negative of Scotlands departure.
Campaign Website
The campaign has gone live and has been released in app form. It invites the general public to activate the campaign and put their spin on the promotion of their home land.