Anatomy of Design

4

Flags imbue the modern graphic design ethos even though their origins date to

antiquity. Less is usually more. Simplicity and economy are paramount to

functionality, and symbolism is their primary function. The Stars and Stripes,

after all, is the most evocative example of pictorial modernism coming from the

tradition-bound United States, and it was designed in the late eighteenth century.

With the most effective flags, color and shape are dominant components—and

they tell stories without the need for other narrative devices. When symbolic

images are employed, they must be efficiently minimalist and immediately

identifiable. Every graphic component ...