For many in the Pacific Northwest, it has been a dream to one day watch a Cascadia flag fly from the top of the Seattle Space Needle. Now, we can do better.

Starting early Tuesday, August 21st, the Space Needle began accepting design submissions in a contest to decide the next paint job for the iconic Seattle landmark for the next six months, providing Cascadian artists with a prime opportunity to share their skills and get a Cascadia related design on the Space needle!

Submissions are open to the public, and each person can submit up to 5 different designs.

The free contest, which is open for submissions until September 20, can be found at the Space Needle's website, spaceneedle.com/topthis.html. Aspiring contestants can download a blank vector image in the Needle top's distinctive doughnut shape, then fill it in with whatever design they choose – like, as in one already-submitted design, blue, white, and green stripes with three of the Cascadian flag's Douglas Fir trees spaced at equal intervals around the circle.

Contestants are also asked to a submit a description with their image. Participants should use whatever comes to mind, but are also welcome to use ours if nothing better comes to mind:

“The Cascadia Douglas Fir design is inspired by the Pacific Northwest. The blue portion of the design represents the rich sky and the Pacific Ocean, along with the Salish Sea, lakes, and other inland waters. The white represents the mountains, snow, and clouds, while the green represents the evergreen forests of the Pacific Northwest. The Douglas Firs, trees that were named for explorer David Douglas, whose explorations during the early 18th century first documented the ‘Cascading waterfalls’ of the mountain range that later bore the name “the Cascades” symbolize endurance and resilience. These colors and icon together represent the distinct nature of the Pacific Northwest, blending its unique geography, history, and culture together into a single unified design.”

The possibilities are endless! Those with graphic design interest may wish to depict iconic scenes of Cascadia – the flag flying atop a mountain, a soccer match or on a backdrop of the Pacific coast. Those (like the CascadiaNow artistic staff) whose talents are limited to drawing stick figures in Paint may find themselves taking a somewhat less grandiose approach – but all submissions are encouraged! More than one application is possible per contestant, so don't worry about finding that single perfect design – submit several!

Applications will be narrowed to a field of five finalists by a group of local artists, then voted on by the public to determine the winning design. Expect an update in our October newsletter, especially if a Cascadia-related design (or several) make it into the final round!

Anyone who makes a submission can trend on twitter with #topthis, make it visible with #Cascadia and make sure to let us know, either by emailing us at cascadianow@gmail.com or @cascadianow and we'll make sure to repost your design.

We can’t wait to see your designs!