Gilbert Baker

The rainbow flag is a symbol of pride and community that was first unfurled at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Freedom Day Parade on June 25, 1978. Led by Baker, the flag’s designer, thirty volunteers gathered at the Gay Community Center in San Francisco to hand-dye and stitch rainbow flags for the parade, two of which were later hung in the United Nations Plaza in San Francisco to highlight the acceptance and equality of sexual and gender minorities as both a global struggle and a matter of civil rights. The contemporary, mass-produced version of the flag in MoMA’s collection celebrates the accessibility and worldwide adoption of this humble masterpiece of design.

Baker admired the universality of the rainbow, which he called a “natural flag in the sky.” He also was inspired by the way in which American flags had proliferated in popular culture as symbols of commemoration, power, and festivity during the United States’ bicentennial celebrations of 1976. Since its inception, Baker’s flag has undergone numerous revisions, but all variations maintain the rainbow scheme.

Two weeks after its formal entry into MoMA’s collection, the rainbow flag was hung for the first time in the Museum’s galleries on June 26, 2015, the day the US Supreme Court made its historic decision to legalize same-sex marriage in all states. The rainbow flag continues to stand as a powerful and evocative symbol of acceptance, community, diversity, and, above all, love.