Minnesota State Flag and Seal Redeisgn

[Silophant]

Yeah. The social media obsession with a loon flag/seal doesn't seem all that different to me than the (thankfully briefer) obsession with the random dog picture.

On the other hand, if the seal isn't on the flag anymore, how often will I even see it? I just can't get too worked up about it.

[thespeedmccool]

The number of people (including lawmakers!) who just want the new flag to be the loon seal on a blue background is shocking and disappointing.

So, so many people have no sense for design.

[Didier]

Loons are pretty cool, though, tbh.

[twincitizen]

The number of people (including lawmakers!) who just want the new flag to be the loon seal on a blue background is shocking and disappointing.

So, so many people have no sense for design.

That, and the average person probably thinks that's what state flags are supposed to look like, and/or bias towards the general appearance of the current flag.

I do think the commission erred in selecting several flag finalists with similar "pointy geometric object" themes. I wish there'd been a little more diversity of design among the finalists. It's too easy to lump them all together as looking like corporate logos, etc.

Just heard about this:
"Check out the designs for the next Minnesota state flag! The final six designs selected by the State Emblems Redesign Commission will be on display in the MOA Rotunda this Saturday, December 9 and Sunday, December 10. One of these flags will be the basis for the new flag. The designs will likely be modified, including changes to shapes and colors."

[Korh]

If it was a flag I'd agree but less for the seal. Someone correct me but I assume the seal is just gonna be stamped on official documents so how each of these look in black and white/2 tones is important. Plus this isn't the only official MN government thing that has a loon on it, our state quarter has one.

[Tom H.]

Down to three: Panel puts off final Minnesota flag decisions

"F29" will now join "3C" as another mournful alphanumeric byword of what could have been.

[Nick]

That is wild.

[Tom H.]

If you'd told me a week ago that F29 wouldn't be the final deisgn selected, I wouldn't have been too surprised, but if you'd told me it would finish *last* out of the 6 finalists, I would have been shocked.

[Mdcastle]

My problem with F29 is that from a distance it didn't look too different from the typical seal on a blue bedsheet flag that we and everyone else have.

[thespeedmccool]

I can appreciate that Starflake isn't the perfect design, but it really should've moved on over that North Star Flag ripoff.

I can't even begin to understand how the fifth-place finished was even a finalist. It's unbelievably ugly.

I hope they pick the design with the swallowtail on the hoist side. The North Star Flag ripoff is all out of proportion, and the other one is clever, but a little too clever for a flag I think.

[Didier]

I’ll be curious to see how much they end up changing in the final design. None of the finalists blew me away, but I was surprised at how much better each concept became after the minor tweaks proposed by the flag expert guy in that Star Tribune article.

[Mdcastle]

The snowflake design coule have worked if it was a bit bigger I suppose. The North Star Flag ripoff is my favorite of the designs remaining, although I don't see it as an improvement over the original North Star Flag.

As for the the state seal, I do like it. I liked it more before they decided it wasn't woke enough and stripped off the date of statehood and the state motto. I get that French language doesn't have the cachet that it did 150 years ago but they could have used the English translation.

[fehler]

I like the tricolor, now that I see the vague Minnesota shape the left side forms. Didn't see that until it was shown against a background.

[MNdible]

Stunning (and not at all surprising) that they've managed to take the only part of this process that had built any consensus (the new seal) and turn it into an own goal.

[VacantLuxuries]

Stunning (and not at all surprising) that they've managed to take the only part of this process that had built any consensus (the new seal) and turn it into an own goal.

People who liked the seal before the removal of the motto and founding year but suddenly are angry about it after that happened probably need to do some self reflection on why acknowledging that this land was stolen, even in small ways that don't affect them personally, makes them so upset.

Removing the motto from the seal doesn't delete it forever.
Removing the year of founding doesn't "unfound" Minnesota.
Referring to Minnesota as "Mni Sóta" on the seal doesn't change the name of the state.

And hey, while we're at it - writing the state's motto in French didn't make our state's official language French either.

[mattaudio]

"People probably need to do some self reflection," whether true or not, isn't the political sales pitch one may think it is.

[VacantLuxuries]

Sure, and if this was the sort of thing determined by a popular vote, jockeying to get the "best of the possible" version of the seal/flag would be a bigger part of this. I'm glad it isn't, because it allows for the committee to make a decision to acknowledge that the land and people were here before the founding of Minnesota, regardless of whether people who have never given a second's thought about the seal think it's "woke" or not to do so.

In five years, a majority of those people will go back to not thinking about the seal at all. Some of them, like the people still seething over Bde Make Ska or Bdote, will grind that axe forever. But we'll have done the right thing, and it's their choice to remain mad about something that doesn't affect them or not.

[seanrichardryan]

The green and blues are just terrible tones together. I'd pick the swirly one for that reason alone.

[Didier]

They picked the Minnesota shape one. With the tweaks it’s better than the original version.

[Mdcastle]

Since the Great Seal "doesn't affect people at all" why not just have the name "Minnesota" in black Comic Sans text on a plain white circle and call it good?