Red Peak and Facilitating a Design Process with the Public
It is no surprise that the Flag Consideration Process put in motion by the Government has had this outcome, but there are plenty of revelations. Nine months in and 10,000 flag design submissions later, the Panel has whittled them down to four finalists — more commonly referred to as the three ferns and a koru.
That simplification in itself indicates the poor choice of the selection. New Zealand’s response seems to have amounted to a collective sigh mixed with frustration and confusion. The advent of Red Peak, however, has offered up some interesting thoughts and insights into the process, what could have been, and design leadership.
The blandness of the final flag selection was hinted at in the Panel’s long list of forty designs. A simple categorisation of the designs showed little thought for anything other than what included a fern, a southern cross, or a koru. You could probably argue that the inclusion of the designs from Studio Alexander and Aaron Dustin were token choices that covered the advice of their Advisory Group. As stated in a recent Official Information Act request, they were told that they should “revisit the range of designs with a view to include more geometric/reductive designs in the long list.”
To further exacerbate concerns over the final four designs, two of the fern flags are identical and only vary in colour scheme, while the third fern flag turned out to be a slight modification of the Government-owned Fern Mark. Adding the well-known preference of Prime Minister John Key for a fern, you can now see why there is disappointment — people began to feel the promise of choice was broken, and worse yet, manipulated.
Despite being an advocate of both a flag change and the silver fern, Rowan Simpson was spurred to write a blog piece highlighting the lack of choice in the Panel’s selection. Rowan also went a step further and singled out what he saw as “the best of the bunch” — Aaron Dustin’s Red Peak. Aaron, a professional designer, understood that a flag is more than what it looks like on the surface and has presented a very compelling story behind Red Peak. With Rowan’s pitch and Aaron’s ability to present his flag to a wider audience, support suddenly began to galvanise. People wanted more choice, and Red Peak was their hero.
One thing lead to another and a petition began to get Red Peak into the referendum. This was handed over to Government this week with 50,000 signatures (I was there — politicians and reporters with flags is an odd sight). Aaron also began a Facebook page, now with 22,000 followers, and Twitter too was ablaze; #RedPeak came alive.
As to why, this could be a number of things. Perhaps because of the compelling draw of its underdog status, perhaps as a rallying cry for the sadly lacking choice, perhaps to bash John Key and his process, or perhaps because it was genuinely a compelling design people could attach their own meaning to. What is clear though, is that Red Peak has inspired a wave of creative responses from the public. Red Peak resonated with people. Amazed, I quickly started to document these visual reactions on a blog — Red Peak of New Zealand.
Red Peak’s design has enabled a versatile and dynamic expression of the nation. Based on Māori taniko design, the simple geometric forms offer a modular system that can be and have been used and interpreted in a variety of ways — from mountains and Pukeko to Fred Dagg and the all-seeing eye of our beloved Thingee. It is fair to say that the abstract nature of Red Peak is its greatest attribute.
However, the irony is not lost on many that the genuine engagement of the public with Red Peak is not being championed by the Government. This is the level of national participation such a discussion should be aiming for. But perhaps this is a core appeal of the flag. People are taking ownership of Red Peak, and in turn, their own expression of national identity. It is not being constrained and forced by Government process or business interests, but is a genuine grassroots campaign for something that is uniquely them, uniquely New Zealand. By the people, for the people.
At the time of writing this, it’s hard to say whether Red Peak is going to make a late entry into the referendum. We’ve already seen it turn into a political football, with other parties supporting its addition. But I think this entire process and outcome, with Red Peak as one of many events along the path, can offer some important learnings when it comes to engaging the public in questions of design, visual culture and identity.
Red Peak has thrown into sharp relief the importance of story, inspiration, and concepts behind and underpinning design. Part of the reason for Red Peak’s fame and favour is the powerful and compelling story that Aaron has been able to tell, and the public be able to engage with. Have the four finalists been telling a compelling argument? It doesn’t feel that way — if anything, it feels like post-rationalisation. Perhaps if the public were being engaged beyond the surface-level nature of a flag, we wouldn’t have comments from Panel members saying that they found most people “struggle with abstract designs, of which [Red Peak] is one.”
However, the rise of Red Peak has proven once again that design is not a linear process. Designers know that not everything works the first time. The Flag Consideration Panel’s process suggests that there was little room for development, iteration, and client (the public?) consultation. The long list of forty, for example, was a perfect opportunity to include the public in a feedback loop — but transparency of selection is not enough, nor is statistical analysis an honest measure of the potential success of a design. As some have called out already, perhaps this is why we need to be practicing ‘agile democracy’. If mistakes are to be made, catch them early, catch them fast, and learn. Prototype, iterate and embrace it.
I will finish with this thought: perhaps the problem with the flag consideration process isn’t the lack of designers on a panel, but perhaps it is a lack of appreciation or understanding of design process in Government. What if our leaders had the audacity to let experts in their field help facilitate the process, not spend four hours advising on a result? Better yet, what if it wasn’t leaders trying to be the designers, but designers becoming leaders? Perhaps this flag debate would have four quality flags, each with their own compelling story like that of Red Peak, and all offering New Zealanders a real choice. Maybe then we could have a real discussion.
