NZ Flag Options Reviewed

Here’s a practical, design-led look at how the shortlisted four flag options stack up.

Black and white fern

I’m not a fan of this one. It’s forgettable. I’ve seen it numerous times now and I still struggle to recall what the fern looks like. Is it white? Is it black? Oh it’s both. How inclusive. I also find from a practical standpoint that black and white items don’t do well in the wash. The black inevitably bleeds into the white and leaves the white an unappealing grey. This is something to consider given tea towels take a hammering and require regular hot water washes. This design will age rapidly.

Silver Fern (Red, White and Blue)

Here we have the fern all in white against red and blue plus a few red stars outlined in white. Wow, this designer (oops — sorry, architect) really got value for money. Obviously he got a cut-price deal on a clip art cd from the 90s with ferns and stars on it. He’s pasted all the images on the disc into this submission and used two colours so we can have a bit of everything, it’s bound to have wide appeal. I like how he’s not stopped at one star but reused the same star several times, that’s a neat way to extend your clip art budget. It’s also neat how you get two designs in one towel. For example hang it over your oven door rail one way and it’s a fern on red and blue. Hang it the other way it’s stars on blue. Again, thought should be given to the washability of this one. We all know what happens when red goes in the wash.

Silver Fern (Black, White and Blue)

We should make this Kyle guy the Minister of Finance. In a brilliant example of thrift in action he’s thrashed out two designs from one clip art budget. Just genius. I can’t say much more about this design as I would run the risk of repeating myself.

Koru (Black)

Now I studied design with Andrew Fyfe and he’s an absolute top bloke. While of the four we’re allowed to vote on I prefer this option the most I will point out that I’ve found material dyed black to not be as absorbent as white material. For some reason it just doesn’t suck up the suds quite as nicely as a lighter colour does and smears wine glasses. After a few piping hot washes the white will discolour also.

Red Peak

Despite a groundswell of opinion John Key says New Zealand can’t vote on this one. It’s a good thing too. As a tea towel it’s totally lacking in any pictures. Obviously the designer had blown his istock budget the day he submitted this and could only draw simple shapes. Given the strong geometric shapes and lack of kitsch in this design I can’t see it lending that little bit of personality that my somewhat austere granite topped kitchen needs. It needs a jandal or fern or something to give it truly tokenistic appeal.

If you want to sign the petition to at least have the Red Peak as an option to vote on go here: https://www.change.org/p/prime-minister-john-key-red-peaks-for-new-zealand-flag

Farah Iqbal has a Bachelor of Design and has worked in publishing, advertising and social media for 15 years.