A CBC reporter鈥檚 quest to rank B.C.鈥檚 municipal flags sparked a West Coast controversy this week as the artist behind the image on Tofino鈥檚 flag claimed he鈥檇 never given Tofino permission to use it.
Alright, let's do this.
鈥� Justin McElroy (@j_mcelroy)
In this thread, I'm going to rank every single municipal flag in British Columbia.
Justin McElroy ranked Tofino鈥檚 flag at 38 out of the 130 flags on his list, explaining that the flag 鈥渟creams Tofino,鈥� and has a 鈥渧ery nice postcard design,鈥� but lost marks for having 鈥楾ofino B.C.鈥� printed on it as well as the artist鈥檚 signature.
A potentially larger problem than that signature鈥檚 impact on the flag鈥檚 ranking arose when the artist it belongs to, Roy Henry Vickers, saw the flag and claimed he had never given Tofino permission to use his design.
BIG MUNICIPAL FLAG NEWS: it seems the artist whose signature is on the Tofino flag says he never designed the flag or gave them permission to use it.
鈥� Justin McElroy (@j_mcelroy)
Tofino Mayor Josie Osborne was quick to respond, Tweeting that the district was looking into the allegation.
We鈥檙e looking in to this right now... please stand by! The District of Tofino will absolutely want to take the right and respectful steps.
鈥� Josie Osborne (@Josie_Osborne)
She later followed up, suggesting Tofino had discovered documentation that shows the district received permission to use the image and that 鈥渙ur records indicate the artist was paid.鈥�
We've unearthed 1992 & 2002 correspondence between the and the artist, Roy Henry Vickers, about use of the image. I'm following up directly with him to discuss, take any other necessary & respectful steps, & ensure all is in proper order. Good learning today!
鈥� Josie Osborne (@Josie_Osborne)
The two sides had seemingly reached a resolution Thursday afternoon as Vickers, who owns a gallery in Tofino, Tweeted he was reviewing a contract with the district.
We are reviewing the contract. It鈥檚 all good
鈥� Roy Henry Vickers (@RHVickers)
The flag does not seem to appear anywhere on the District of Tofino鈥檚 website and is not believed to be flying anywhere in town. McElroy found the design on the .
Osborne told the Westerly News late Thursday afternoon that she had not spoken directly with Vickers, but had reached out to him, and that she believes the issue has been resolved.
She said the district鈥檚 documents show that Tofino reached an agreement with Vickers to design Tofino鈥檚 municipal logo in 1992 and that the two parties reached another agreement to adapt the logo into a flag in 2002.
鈥淚 was surprised to see Roy Henry Vickers Tweet, but I was quite confident that we would be able to find the backup documentation and just wanted to make sure we could take care of everything and clear up any misunderstandings,鈥� she said.
She added she is a fan of McElroy鈥檚 and had been following his flag rankings before the local controversy unfolded.
鈥淗e鈥檚 funny and irreverent and I enjoy following his writing, his Tweets and social media,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o, when he came out with the municipal flag series, I knew it was going to be a good one. I think it鈥檚 all tongue in cheek and in good humour, poking a little bit at some of the funny and odd looking flags that towns have.鈥�
Osborne, who first joined Tofino鈥檚 council in 2013, said she was living in Tofino when the flag was unveiled in 2002, but could not recall ever seeing it in use.
鈥淚鈥檓 not sure what the use of the municipal flag really could be. It isn鈥檛 something that鈥檚 come up ever in any conversation I鈥檝e had with anyone. In fact, the only time I鈥檝e ever seen municipal flags really at play is at the annual UBCM Convention where there鈥檚 a display of every single flag. But, I don鈥檛 think they have Tofino鈥檚 because we鈥檝e never given them one,鈥� she said. 鈥淚鈥檓 not sure that it really qualifies as a flag. There鈥檚 probably rules that it breaks, but it is beautiful.鈥�
She added she often hears positive feedback about the logo Vickers designed for Tofino in 1992.
鈥淲hen I pass out my business card, I invariably get the comment, 鈥榃hat a beautiful logo.鈥� That is my segue to tell people about Roy Henry Vickers and the Eagle Aerie Gallery鈥攚hich most people have heard of or even visited,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 think we鈥檙e fortunate to have Roy鈥檚 iconic art as part of our municipal image.鈥�
The Westerly News has reached out to Vickers for comment and will update this story when new information comes in.
andrew.bailey@westerlynews.ca
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