Postage Stamp Designs - from Kafka to Loriot
_ Reflection on the postage stamp in visual communication
_ Image analyses of selected stamp motifs
_ Insights into the design practice of an exposed expert
_ with an essay on the art of design by Bernhard Uske
The world's first official postage stamp was sold in May 1840: the legendary "One Penny Black" featuring the profile of the Queen of England. Sir Rowland Hill's innovative franking concept quickly became internationally accepted.
The postage stamp – a medium, a means of transport, a sign field. This book addresses, for the first time, the significance and function of the postage stamp as a prominent element of communication design.
The power inherent in the small visual universes and the phenomenon of the very unique and extremely heterogeneous visual language of this medium of mass society are analyzed based on over 40 designs from the visual design practice of Hans Günter Schmitz.
In addition to the postage stamps put into circulation, drafts and preliminary studies are presented, along with comments from the designer. Image communication scientist Bernhard Uske has devoted a comprehensive essay to the subject of the publication.
