Love Birds

Giclee Print on Mounted Canvas
Edition of 300 S/N
Image: 6″ x 4″
$65

I have done several paintings of postage stamps over the years, usually the “Love” stamps that are issued every year or so. It is not a new subject for artists. In the 1800’s and early 1900’s stamps were subject matter for the trompe l’oeil painters whose work was in vogue then and is extremely collectible and valuable now. One great trompe l’oeil painter, J. D. Chalfont, did a small painting called “Which is Which?” of a stamp that he painted next to a real two cent stamp which was pasted on the board. Today the actual stamp is faded almost completely, but the painted stamp is as crisp and bright as if it had been painted last week.

Often I will just paint a stamp alone, pinned to a board. In this piece I wanted to make the composition a bit more interesting, so I added the ribbon. I played around with several twists and turns until I settled on the shape that you see. Only after I finished the painting and had it printed as a Giclée did I finally realize that the shape and color of the ribbon are the same as the symbol for Breast Cancer Awareness. I think it turned out to be a perfect juxtaposition and a neat little painting.