The three canvases form a tiered arrangement, with each canvas approximately 25% smaller than the one below, thereby creating a three-dimensional work.

Each canvas is painted to resemble the version of the United States flag that was in use at the time the work was painted, with 48 white stars in a blue canton on a field of thirteen alternating red and white stripes.

Each flag is rendered with the approximately correct colors and proportions, as defined by Title 4 of the United States Code.

In a sense, the perspective is reversed, with the smaller paintings projecting out towards the viewer.

[3] Since the early 1960s, Three Flags has been included in numerous exhibitions, and different kinds of books and magazine articles focused on art and American history.