How to show a crisis that can’t be seen? By putting it into a symbol nation understands.

Latvia needed more blood donors. While national pride is strongly tied to the Latvian flag and its iconic blood-red colour, the country still lacked people willing to donate blood and become everyday heroes.

We turned the Latvian flag itself into a symbol of the problem. Instead of simply asking people to donate blood, we challenged their sense of national pride and made the shortage impossible to ignore.

Legend has it that the Latvian flag was created from a canvas stained by the blood of a fallen hero who inspired Latvians to be strong and united. We created The Drying Flag, altering the national flag to reflect the percentage of blood donors in Latvia. Only 41% of the flag kept its original blood-red colour, showing how many of its own heroes Latvia was missing. Institutions hung The Drying Flag in place of the real Latvian flag, turning public spaces into a statement that raised questions, built awareness and ultimately encouraged more people to donate blood.