Symbolizing a city.

 
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OVERVIEW / Salt Lake City, Utah, is my beautiful hometown. In May 2020, the city began soliciting applications for a flag redesign. I am by no means a vexillographist, but I’ve always been fascinated by flags and decided to try my hand at it.

 
 

IDEATION

 

Since Salt Lake is the heart and capital city of Utah, I knew I wanted to incorporate the colors of the Utah state flag — a regal navy blue and gold combination. I also knew from the get-go that I wanted to highlight the mountains enveloping the city because they have been a focal point of the city’s rich history.

 
 
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A NEW FLAG

 
 

Because I grew up in Utah, I know a fair bit about both the city and state’s pioneer history as well as the city’s current inclusive cultural atmosphere. I wanted to incorporate both in my design without overcomplicating it, as I feel that the old official Salt Lake City flags have:

 
 
Salt Lake City’s first flag (left) was sketched by high school students in the ‘60s and adopted in 1969. It was replaced by an emblem of the city’s skyline (right) in 2006 because the first flag “focused entirely on the city’s LDS church heritage.”

Salt Lake City’s first flag (left) was sketched by high school students in the ‘60s and adopted in 1969. It was replaced by an emblem of the city’s skyline (right) in 2006 because the first flag “focused entirely on the city’s LDS church heritage.”

 
 

For my final submission, I focused on simplicity and highlighting Salt Lake’s beautiful outdoor scenery:

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The circular ring mirrors the Utah State Flag, as does the color scheme. The mountains shown are the Broad’s Fork “Twin Peaks” overlooking the Salt Lake Valley. The waves represent the Great Salt Lake.

I chose to include three stars as my way of honoring both the history and present story of Salt Lake City. Stars are often used to symbolize a legacy in the form of constellations; I felt that they could do the same for Salt Lake’s flag. Each star represents the people that have shaped the Salt Lake City into what it is today — one star for the Native Americans who were first to call the city home, another for the Mormon Pioneers who turned the city into a safe haven from religious persecution, and a third star for newcomers like myself who have been so readily welcomed.