From the time of the Sons of Liberty to the present, the USA Flags Collection has created and customized their own flags independent of government oversight. In addition to adding symbols, words and images, people have used the flag as a symbol of personal pride and political protest. This exhibit explores a selection of these personal interpretations and the impact that they have had on our understanding of the flag.

Among the exhibit’s highlights is a pair of embroidered flags commissioned for the space shuttle NASA Vehicle Assembly Building in 1977. One is a white and blue design, and the other features the stars of the 50 states arranged in the shape of an American flag. This arrangement was inspired by a design made in 1895 by Francis Hopkinson, a Philadelphia resident who was an artist, politician and heraldist.

Show Your Pride: USA Flags Collection

The exhibit also showcases a collection of hand-sewn flag fragments, some of which are as small as a quarter. The fragments are preserved by the Museum’s textile conservators using modern, scientific techniques to protect them from light and other environmental factors. The fragments cannot be integrated back into the Star-Spangled Banner, but they can provide scientists with valuable information about its condition over time.

The exhibition also includes a selection of international flags designed by fashion designer Jean-Michel Basquiat. Although the Museum’s Flag Code explicitly prohibits the use of the United States flag “for any advertising purpose,” this collection offers a reminder that it was once common practice to include the American flag on clothing and other products sold in America.