The Stamp Art & Postal History of Michael Thompson & Michael Hernandez De Luna

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Summary: It's art, but is it good art?
Review: As one who has always had an interest in philately, I was intrigued by the concept of the two Michaels - the notion of creating "artistamps" and affixing them as postage, the ultimate goal being the successful delivery of the letter complete with the Post Office's cancellation; the project carried a wonderful tint of (harmless) subversity to it. This book displays the results of their labours, full-page colour reproductions of individual stamp sheets opposite examples of successfully mailed covers. The artists' aim in the design of their stamps seemed more motivated by how blatant the subject matter and the design could be and still be accepted as postage rather than trying to create something that could've passed as an actual postage stamp - which in my view takes much more imagination and effort. Of the two artists, Hernandez de Luna seemed more inclined to create stamps overtly puerile in design and subject matter: commemorating women's breasts, condoms, erect penises, animals fornicating, et al. - more labels than stamps really - that "thumb their nose" at the subjects and designs of such postal bodies as the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee. Thompson, while not above this kind of callowness, more often suceeds in creating realistic looking designs, notably from foreign countries - with his Kenyan "Afrodisiac" rhino, Norwegian "Chernobyl Deer" and Japanese "Eat Whale" and the (amazingly tasteless) "Aum Shinrikyo" Sarin Gas stamps succeeding admirably. Often, the best artwork on view is not on the stamps, but on the covers the artists created to mail their stamps, utilizing vintage labels, old envelopes and custom lettering. The works are preceeded by several excellent essays on the history of artistamps and mail art, but ultimately the reader must decide whether the book's content justifies its price. It's art but, quite often, not very good art.

Rating:
Summary: With full-page representations of postage stamp art
Review: This lavish oversized paperback is packed with full-page representations of postage stamp art, while accompanying text provides a postal history of stamp art. From early postal system stamps to the evolution of the stamp as a work of art, Stamp Art & Postal History Of Michael Thompson and Michael Hernandez De Luna packs in some excellent detail and lots of color.