Billboards are considered as visual scapegoats of built environments. These things are subjects of much angry neighborhood and op-ed petitions. They serve people who are willing to pay a lot of money; that is why the public gazes at the advertisements for cosmetics, booze, junk foods, and even sports teams.
But while these things cater to the pleasure of businesses, pole banners – with advertisements from theaters, libraries, museums, and other civic labs – serve at the pleasure of people’s imagination. Proudly flying on light poles, 10-20 feet off the ground, these things echo lasts tropes of public pageantry: like sails of Viking ships or remnants of the medieval crusades.
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Street and boulevard banners blend into cityscapes, usually so well that people forget they are there. But do not be fooled: pole, streetlight, or boulevard ensigns are everywhere. Every day, they line the perimeter of civic centers, boulevards, or main streets of cities. They run down popular streets and avenues in places like Chicago, New York, Miami, Los Angeles, or Dallas.
People would be hard-pressed to find naked poles in major cities like Los Angeles or New York, especially around their stadiums. According to advertising companies, it is almost impossible to drive down the country’s endless, flat suburban boulevards without finding banners in a flapping procession of sculptures, violinists, exotic animals, or dancers. Businesses need ten in a row to get the required effect. The repetition of colors and designs catches people’s eyes. Only by the last banned people get a chance to read what was written on these things.
History of banners
These flags have been fixtures of cities in the United States since the mid-1800s. The first poles in the country have gas lamps, on which advertisement ensigns would have been fire hazards. Then there were ornamental lamps, which were too lavish and ornate to be used as advertisement hangers (although these ensigns were occasionally adorned for Christmas holidays).
The history of city pageantry is ageless. American cities always had wreaths, garlands, link letters, bunting, and flags that extended across streets and boulevards. The rise of car culture after the Second World War familiarized us with triangle pennants decorating automobile dealerships, as well as the bright strips of fabric hanging from gas stations, hawking Tupperware and steak knife sets to sweeten the sale of cars.
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During the rise of sombrero-shaped taquerias and electric neon businesses, the sight of colorful flags fluttering in the wind was an easy and cheap way of attracting the public’s attention. But event-specific ads now adorning streetlights are relatively new. The country’s first modern light pole ad campaigns started on the streetlights of Magnificent Mile in Chicago.
Emil Harley designs these poles; a former Marine turned decorator and florist from the suburbs; mounting these poles campaigns needed muscle, a solid grasp of outdoor decorating logistics, and ingenuity (especially when at least 40 miles per hour winds blowing off so hard on buildings that they could tear ensigns straight of poles). But the labor and hard work paid off.
In 1982, light pole ensigns designed with a white-and-blue illustration of legendary baseball player Babe Ruth struck a nerve that newspapers proclaimed these things as a new design phenomenon, now found in restaurants, corporate boardrooms, and living rooms around the United States.
The museum’s telephone lines were jammed with calls and requests from people, especially collectors. There is something about pieces of a piece of cloth. When you own banners, it is like getting a piece of that place. You take part in the urban scene, and it is yours forever. It is the most sensational and striking form of public advertising people can have.
The future of banners
Street ensigns gradually transformed from eye-catching innovation to the conventionality of the cityscape in the United States, a lot lost the appeal these things originally had. They become part of the basic vocabulary when promoting brands and events.
Businesses have to have them if they want a successful brand or event launch. A lot of cities in the country have more boulevard banners than they know what to do with. Most of these things are petroleum-based products. The same materials billboards, dock seals, tents, and tarps are made from. Elements can discolor or tear them, but they are not recyclable.
Usually, these emblems of city culture find themselves flying in alleyways, sidewalks, boulevards, and main streets, even in suburban areas. Over the past years, some manufacturers have started to upcycle old ensigns into wallets, tote bags, and beanbag chairs: a conscious effort to give these things a second life.
It is not a bad idea to repackage our collective civic experiences into excellent and handy mementos. But don’t get us wrong, boulevard ensigns are still one of the most important, efficient, effective, and the best way to advertise brands and events. Companies still use them to attract people’s attention, just like how they used to in the past.