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Olympia skyline

Olympia

Washington's understated capital, Olympia blends rainforests, a gray bay and state buildings in a flag that evokes nature as much as politics.

The flag of Olympia

NAVA design score

2/10

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Flag palette

  • #ffffff
  • #00a000
  • #30a0ff

3 colors

Good design?

Olympia is nothing like a flashy city: here, no skyscrapers, no tech centers as far as the eye can see like in Seattle. The capital of Washington lives to the rhythm of the rain, the tides, the pines as straight as posts, and the state buildings set facing the bay.

Its flag recalls this double identity: institutional on one side, deeply natural on the other. You sense in it the influences of the Pacific Northwest, mountain silhouettes, the color of the rainforests, soft tones that evoke mist more than neon.

The flag flies over a city that does not seek to impress, but to represent an immense state where nature often dictates the pace.

It is a flag that speaks softly, but says it true: "Here, politics moves forward among the trees, the rain and the Pacific wind."

Cultural Universe

Music, books, films and series that capture the soul of this city

🎵Music

  • Pussy Whipped(1993)
    Bikini Kill
    Riot grrrl was born here, in the shared houses around the campus
  • Beat Happening(1985)
    Beat Happening
    K Records and underground pop, built in a bedroom
  • Dig Me Out(1997)
    Sleater-Kinney
    The band is named after a road in the Olympia suburbs

“A city tells its story as much through its flags as through its songs, novels, and screens.”

Sources & references

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