The Virginia Beach Flag Sucks

We don’t have a flag - we have a city seal on a blue backround

With the number of tourists in 2022 towering to 13.6 million visitors in VB, I find disturbing that this part of the city’s design has not been changed since the date of our original seal of 1963 (Virginia Beach, 2023; Virginia Beach, n.d.).

Back in 2015 a YouTube video labeled ‘Why city flags may be the worst-designed thing you’ve never noticed by Roman Mars’ list an example of poorly designed city flags - with Virginia Beach prominently at the middle-bottom of a TED talk viewed by over 5 million people (Image 1)

To be straight forward - a seal on a flag is the prominent loss of an even greater symbol for the city.

Flag design, from Kaye (2006), follows the five basic principles of:

• Keep It Simple. The flag should be so simple that a child can draw it from memory.
• Use Meaningful Symbolism. The flag’s images, colors, or patterns should relate to what it symbolizes.
• Use 2 or 3 Basic Colors. Limit the number of colors on the flag to three which contrast well and come from the standard color set.
• No Lettering or Seals. Never use writing of any kind or an organization’s seal.
  • “If you need to write the name of what you’re representing on your flag. Your symbolism has failed” (TED, 2015. 7:27; Kaye, 2006).
• Be Distinctive or Be Related. Avoid duplicating other flags, but use similarities to show connections.

While our city seal is amazing our current flag design is lacking. I position that:

• VB’s flag design is poor and in violation of principle 4 of good flag design - No Lettering or Seals. “In most cases, a city flag should represent the entire city, not just the government. Thus, city-wide symbolism is preferred over a city seal or a city logo (government symbols)” (2022 New American City Flags Survey, n.d.).
• Out of 150 flags ranked by the North American Vexillological Association poll in 2004 (NAVA - the organization of flag scholars) VB places 125^th, Norfolk 116^th, and Chesapeake 69^th out of 150 flags (Flag Surveys, n.d.). With 150th place being the worst flag.
• VB’s tourist position can leverage a new flag design for increased VB revenue, recognition, and civic pride
  • This can be seen from the case of Chicago’s flag change. “There’s probably at least one store on every block near where I work that sells some sort of Chicago flag paraphernalia” (TED, 2015,4:49; Whet Moser from Chicago Magazine).
  • “When a police officer or a firefighter dies in Chicago, often it’s not the flag of the United States on his casket. It can be the flag of the city of Chicago. That’s how deeply the flag has gotten into the civic imagery of Chicago” (TED, 2015. 5:26; Kaye, 2006).

Hence, these points necessitate the need for a new flag design.

“Often when city leaders say we have more important things to do than worry about a city flag. My response is. If you had a great city flag, you would have a banner for people to rally under to face those more important things” (TED, 2015. 16:11; Kaye, 2006). A well-designed flag can be seen as an indicator of how a city considers all its design systems. Consider the American flag. It might seem frivolous, but it’s not.

• Original Quote: “As we [people] move more and more into cities, the city flag will become not just a symbol of that city as a place, but also, it could become a symbol of how the city considers design itself, especially today, as the populace is becoming more design aware. A well-designed flag could be seen as an indicator of how a city considers all its design systems. Its public transit, its parks, its signage. It might seem frivolous, but it’s not” (TED, 2015. 15:32).

Multiple case studies can be referenced from NAVA members that have successfully implemented new designs with the help of a special committee (Case Studies in Flag Design, n.d.). All previous redesigns have given a re-consideration of what the city is and what it has become while garnering tremendous community involvement during the process. With sites such as SpeakUpVB the process would be seamless for our city to implement competitions and opinion polls. I propose to lead a new initiative to redesign the flag of Virginia Beach (VB).

You all may know some individuals that have an American flag flying outside their house. It shows that they are proud of the country that they are in and the design behind the flag. We can do the same for Virginia Beach showing their civic pride. By updating our flag, we’re not just making a symbolic gesture; we’re making another statement about Virginia Beach’s commitment to staying relevant and forward-thinking. It’s time to update Virginia Beach’s flag, joining over 300 other cities in revitalizing their identity (2022 New American City Flags Survey, 2022).

Draft example flag designs for Hampton Roads

References

2022 new american city flags survey. (n.d.). North American Vexillological Association. Retrieved March 14, 2024, from https://nava.org/2022-survey

Case studies in flag design. (n.d.). North American Vexillological Association. Retrieved March 14, 2024, from https://nava.org/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=622278&module_id=475718

Flag surveys. (n.d.). North American Vexillological Association. Retrieved March 14, 2024, from https://nava.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=622278&module_id=475720

Kaye, T. (2006). Good flag, bad flag: How to design a great flag.

TED. (2015). Why city flags may be the worst-designed thing you’ve never noticed [Video]. In YouTube. https://youtu.be/pnv5iKB2hl4?feature=shared&t=932

Virginia Beach tourism pours $3.7B Into local economy in 2022. (2023, November 15). City of Virginia Beach. https://virginiabeach.gov/connect/news/virginia-beach-tourism-pours-3-7b-into-local-economy-in-2022

Virginia beach, virginia (U.S.). (n.d.). Retrieved March 14, 2024, from https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/us-vavib.html