Colorado on my mind

It's Father's Day, and that naturally gets me thinking about my family. My parents and grandparents still live in my hometown of Colorado Springs, so I unfortunately can't be with them today. It's been a a while since I visited, so I've been missing them and Colorado quite strongly these days.

Colorado has been on my mind for other reasons as well. Unfortunately the extreme dry weather has been relentless over the past couple years there, and areas familiar to me have been effected in devastating ways. The Royal Gorge, which I visited as a child, suffered much wildfire damage last week. Areas around the bridge burned steadily, leaving parts of the bridge singed. The fire is being contained at this point, but it hurts to think of such a beautiful and rugged place being so vulnerable.

Royal Gorge Bridge, pre-fire

The Black Forest Fire, which is still currently blazing and is now the most destructive wildfire in Colorado history, hits close to home as well. I used to visit that area with my grandfather who built a few houses there. Almost 500 homes have burned down in since the fire got started. Hard to imagine.

I am thankful that Colorado Springs has been relatively safe so far this summer, though last summer it was hit hard by a horrendous fire that I only saw pictures of. It sounds cliche to say that disasters make you appreciate your beloved people and places more, but it's true.

Through all this, I have noticed art and design certainly can play a role in helping people cope, show support, and reach out during disasters. I have noticed many new graphics pop up across social media to bring attention to the situation in Colorado. While many of them made me smile and feel a sense of solidarity, others made me cringe a little bit. I'll share a some with you:

The original Colorado flag, inspiration for new rallying graphics.

I first saw this one pop up last year during the Waldo Canyon Fire in Colorado Springs. How can you not love this?

I've been seeing this one recently. I actually don't like it at all. It seems to convey that Colorado is a dark and scary place filled with fire and smoke with no hope at all.

This one is still rather ominous looking, but at least there's a nice and relevant message. I think this is much more appropriate than simply incorporating fire and smoke into the flag.

I believe this is a pretty new graphic, too. I just started seeing this in wake of this year's fires. It seems the intent of this graphic is to motivate people to take positive action and inform people that our state's important landmarks are being affected. Though I think the artist did a good job clearly portraying Pikes Peak and the Garden of the Gods, it leaves me with a bad feeling. The image of our iconic landscape on fire comes across a bit cheerful from the simplified colors and forms.

This Colorado "seal" across this photo just shows how amazingly simple and lovable the flag is. This is a great way to convey Colorado's solidarity and identity on any image.

This graphic also highlights and slightly tweaks the genius of Colorado's original flag. I like it for its simplicity and positivity.

I saw this on Twitter just moments ago. Looks like the flag image is popular down to the youngest of artists, in Colorado Springs no less! Two thumbs up for genuineness, positivity, and gratitude. Photo by Jordan Steffen, Denver Post

So there you have it. A little personal reflection on a place I love, along with some artist reflection about graphic design, its use in social media, and how it can be used and interpreted during times of disaster. Thank you to all the firefighters and first responders in Colorado, and stay strong Coloradoans! I love you.