Stamp Rainbows and rainbows on stamps

Children everywhere have been making rainbows tohelp cheer us up during this dreadful time of Coronavirus pandemic and I was inspired to make one too, using stamps.

 Yellow stamps, as always were the most difficult to find, but I eventually found just enough  from GB, France, USA and Japan to complete the yellow band of the rainbow. On a second rainbow I cheated slightly and used gold 1st class stamps!  This was an absorbing activity for a few  hours and while making my collage, I was contemplating the sad reality of how many lives have now been lost in so many of  countries where my stamps have come from.  The iconic US stamp featuring the Statue of Liberty, a proud symbol of New York, is a poignant reminder of how tragically large cities are the worst affected by the virus.  

What are you reading? Among other things, I've been reading about stamps.

Now is a time for catching up on some reading!

This interesting little book was given to me by a friend who visited the British Library earlier this year, and I've only just got round to reading it! I was unaware that The British Library  has many important stamp collections including the entire collection  donated by Industrialist and MP Thomas Tapling (1855-91) .
Stamps have been issued to raise revenue, support disaster funds,  commemorate historic events and people, and are a great way of learning interesting facts about the world.  Included in this little book are some very old and rare examples of stamps, many of which have printing and colour errors making them extremely valuable.

Some of the stamps in this collection are the only ones in existence, but that didn't stop me looking through an old stamp album to see if I had any items which might be rare or valuable. 
No such luck - these Swan stamps issued in Western Australia are worth just a few pence, but I enjoyed perusing my own stock of beautifully designed little artworks and appreciating  the details even more.

If you have a stamp collection of your own, or have perhaps inherited one, now could be the time to  look closely at your stamps and you may  find great treasures too!

Stamp collage Toucan .. but which one?

Keel-billed Toucan - the National bird of Belize

You may have seen my previous post and will have read that there are 43 species of Toucan, but I have chosen the Keel-billed Toucan to collage using stamps from countries including Great Britain, France, India, and Germany as well as postcards for the tree branch. 

Toucans - on stamps, but sadly not so easy to see in the wild

Toucans can be seen in parts of Guatemala, Mexico  and Belize, where we were this time last year, but sadly the only ones we found  were a rather elderly looking stuffed Keel Billed Toucan  in the Cultural centre in San Ignacio, Belize, (NICH)  and others featured in murals, and one made out of tyres!   The Keel Billed Toucan is  Belize's  national bird, and I was surprised at its size.  There are 42 different species  of Toucan, but some are now endangered due to widespread deforestation, which has destroyed their habitat. The Toco toucan, the largest of all the toucans, is so far not endangered as it is more adaptable.

Keel Billed toucan at NICH - Cultural centre, San Ignacio

Keen to make a Toucan stamp collage I've gathered  photos and some stamps
 together to  provide me with inspiration!   Collage to follow soon!

Mural - San Ignacio, Belize 

Mural -Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Toucan made from tyres 

Just four of more than 40 different varieties of Toucans are featured on this sheet of Guyanan stamps : The Yellow Throated, Toco (the largest of the Toucans), Keel-Billed and White Throated toucans. 

The Resplendent Quetzal - an illusive bird but spotted on Guatemalan stamps and banknotes

Some of the stamps in  my late father's collection are the beautiful Guatemalan Quetzal bird stamps issued between 1881 - 7 .  These came to mind when planning a trip to Central America where we  visited Guatemala and hoped to catch sight of some of these beautiful birds, which are a symbol of the country, also appearing on the flag, and giving their name to the Guatemalan currency.


 The currency is also called the  Quetzal, and the bird appears  in flight on each note, as below.

Sadly we didn't see any real live Quetzals, but brought home some hand made beaded versions for the Christmas tree!

 Birds, including the Quetzal also appear on hand made textiles, produced throughout the country - more about  this to follow!
Historically, the  ancient Mayans used the feathers of the resplendent quetzal as decoration and these can be seen in some of the stone carvings in Mayan sites such as Tikal in Guatemala and Palenque in Mexico. It's always good to have a local guide who can point out these things,  as these ancient sculpted details, like the birds, are often very difficult to spot! On the right of this stone stella, if you look very carefully, you can see the tail feathers of the Qutezal which adorned the headress of Pakal, a Mayan emperor.

Renaming a ship .. "The Blue Lady" could be renamed " La Semeuse Bleue"

La Semeuse - Stamp Collage by Rachel Markwick 

A few years ago I made a stamp collage ship using the iconic French stamp called "La Semeuse" or in English, "The Sower".  I used them to make the sails and my original vessel duly sailed off to a new home in Bologna, Italy.  Limited edition Prints are also available! 

  Subsequently, with a dearth of Blue "La Semeuse" stamps in my stock, a new ship emerged and was named "The Blue Lady". 

The Blue Lady - Stamp Collage by Rachel Markwick 

 She also found a new home in West Virginia, USA.  I have prints available, a framed version of which is currently on show in the National Waterways Museum, in Gloucester Docks.  She still goes by the name of The Blue Lady, but new owners of ships often rename them, so who knows, perhaps she could become "La Semeuse Bleue".


See more ships on my website
www.rachelmarkwick.co.uk

England Winners 1966 .. and the Postal Museum is a Winner too!!

Union Jack stamp collage, including the 1966 4d World cup England Winners stamp 

On a recent trip to London, I visited the Postal Museum which was opened on 13th June 2017 by Princess Anne.   Entrance tickets are valid for a year, so I  hope to return again soon  to see what I  missed due to time constraints. Everyone was obviously enjoying the many imaginative displays  and the opportunity to go on the fabulous Mail Rail train under the the City.

The Mail Rail, which carried millions of letters every day across London opened in 1927, but closed in 2003.  Run by staff including former postal and railway workers  it makes for a great way to understand the workings of the system with  stops during   the journey for video presentations on the walls of the platforms where the trains would had their mail bags offloaded  for onward delivery.

Back in the museum itself, displays  took us back way beyond the issue of the Penny Black in 1840 to a time of horse drawn Mail Coaches when  the "postmen" carried pistols to defend themselves against Highwaymen. A  coach was  was once also attacked by an escaped lion!
Nostalgia also kicked in with the story of the issue of the World Cup Stamps in 1966, and the issue of the ENGLAND WINNERS  4d stamp after the winning goal was scored in the final on 30th July!
As the daughter of a stamp dealer,  I found the story particularly poignant, as were various other coincidences during my visit.  The guide  told me  that the stamps were first  released for sale at Trafalgar square post office at midnight on 18th August 1966.  I have several still .. and one appears on a Union Jack Stamp collage I created some time ago .  (Prints available to order).   The coincidences I refer to are that my dad's birthday was 13th June, and he was born in 1927 .. and he was there buying those stamps on 26th August 1966, sensing that they would make a good investment.  Maybe they weren't a great investment financially, as you can pick them up now for very little, but for me it is a great story to remember.I know my dad would  certainly have loved the Postal Museum, and with his knowledge of stamps and history,  would have been a great guide!

Sorry, no postcards sent from Guatemala

I found a post office while I was in Antigua,  Guatemala, but there were no stamps for sale, and  no way to send postcards, due to a long dispute between the Government and the Postal Service. I had heard about this from a friend in Guatemala, but wanted to double check that nothing had changed, which sadly, it hadn't. There are private couriers and methods of sending mail, but I'm not sure how reliable these are. There was  only one member of staff in this reasonably sized Post Office, and I was the only customer.  I was told the only place to  buy stamps is Guatemala City but we weren't able to go there this time.
I do have some  beautiful old Guatemalan stamps from a collection which was my dad's and these seem  even more precious now that we've visited this wonderful country!  More about the stamps  and locations  we visited coming soo

This  Guatemalan postbox  hasn't been used for a while!

Robins and Robinabilia!

Is there such a word as Robinabilia?  That is collecting anything to do with the little red breasted garden bird we know and love and which adorns so many Christmas cards not just here in the UK but  all over the world.

My mother, Marion, had a small collection kept in a simple ring binder, of stamps, cigarette cards, tea cards and postcards, together with Christmas cards and a few random articles about Robins.

Cigarette and cigar packets, tea packets and other packaged food items often contained cards making up sets on various subjects, including birds!  You could buy albums in which to keep these and there was of course an incentive to buy more products to try and complete your set!

  Together with a handful of little ornaments, these form a rather charming little collection. Although I'm certain other collectors of ornamental china birds may have far grander displays, this is for me a  fine example of a small selection of items put together by someone who always loved to watch the birds from her window!
A robin was the subject of my Christmas card design made in 2014 and shown on the Seasonal page of my website, together with other Christmas card designs.  I used a variety of suitably coloured stamps to created the robin in the centre and British and US stamps  to make the borders! Cards are available direct from my studio - you can contact me via e mail : markwickrachel@gmail.com for full details.

I'm not Carping ... but it would be good to see the Guildhall, Gloucester packed like a tin of Sardines!

Carping is an ancient expression meaning to complain about something .. and I'm not!  In fact, I'm very happy to say that you can see my Carp, looking quite beautiful in a silvery frame in the exhibition, Stamping Ground 2, at Gloucester Guildhall, Eastgate Street, until 30th October. (Next to TSB in case you miss the tiny entrance to this tardis like building). The print on show is a limited edition, and has proved very popular. My husband Geoff says it's his personal favourite!  Take a look for yourself!  Alongside the Carp, in an identical frame, is a can of sardines, inspired by a trip to a Portuguese post office.

People regularly ask where I get my inspiration so the blog posts are an ideal way to tell the stories.  See my blog posts of  10th and 15th January  for the story of the Sardines, with several pictures. You can access the posts by going to my website www.rachelmarkwick.co.uk and click on the blog at the left hand side. You can sign up to receive the blogs if you'd like to!

Severn Trows, working vessels on the River Severn

I was in Worcester yesterday and came across this little plaque showing a Severn Trow, by  the bridge across the River Severn.

The plaque reads, "Up to the mid-nineteenth century, this River was the main commercial artery of the West Midlands linking to the sea at Bristol. The Severn Trow was one of the vessels used, typified by its open gold, flat bottom and D shaped stern. "

The  Severn Trows  plied their trade on the river many years ago, but are no longer in use. You can see the remains of some of these little vessels, including the Alma and Jonadab  at the ships' graveyard at Purton, Gloucestershire, where many other types of vessels were hulked to shore up the banks of the river.   I came across a scale model of the Severn Trow  Norah,  in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich  and made a stamp collage depicting her in full sail  in her heyday. She was built in 1968 and sadly beached one hundred years later.   A  framed print is currently on show in the exhibition, Stamping Ground 2 in Gloucester Guildhall, Eastgate Street until 31st October .

Severn Trow, Norah, Stamp Collage by Rachel Markwick 

Lucy Stone - 1818-1893 - an American Suffragist,Abolitionist and Orator - and on an American stamp

Listening to Radio 4 Woman's Hour today, 26th September,  I heard for the first time, the story of Lucy Stone. (You can "Listen again" online.)   Her name immediately brought  to mind  a 50c Magenta stamp with the name Lucy Stone on it, with a portrait of a strong and determined looking woman.
  I had seen this stamp many times in the boxes of  American stamps that I have and which I trawl through to find suitable stamps for  collages.I often get sidetracked by picking out random stamps and looking them up to find out more, but had not done this in the case of Lucy Stone, but Woman's Hour did this for me today!   A campaigner for the rights of women, abolition of slavery and equality for those of other races and religions, she was also the first woman from Massachusetts to gain a college degree. It's interesting to note that this stamp is from the series, Prominent Americans, issued between 1965-8 and that she's the only woman included in the series.!!  Famous men in the series include several Presidents, Architect  Frank Lloyd Wright, Historian Francis Parkman and Henry Ford.  One of the questions asked of USA citizens interviewed recently in  2018,  the 200th anniversary of her birth,  was "What would she think of today's America", and replies varied. She would have been pleased to have seen the first Black president, but would  be dismayed at the inequalities that still exist.

People on stamps take up new roles in my Stamp Collage pictures

Fisherman near Naples

Car worker in Turin

I always like to make connections between my work as a Stamp Collage artist and the content of the stamps I'm using in my pictures. (The less than perfect specimen on the right, which would not appeal to a serious collector, would be a prime candidate for future work  as I prefer not to use stamps in top condition.)   I  use stamps with people on to form crews and passengers on ships, and  for "peopling" a landscape or crowd. Some stamps spring easily to mind, including this series of 17 stamps issued in Italy in 1950  known as Italia al lavoro  or Italy at Work.   Each one shows a person at work in the region known for  their particular trade, such as these shown here.
There is a  rather ancient looking automobile to the right of the I Lira design( above right), as Turin is the home of the Fiat motor company,  and in the background is a view of the mountains of  Piemonte. Having recently visited Naples and gazed daily on the wonderful view of Mount Vesuvius across the bay,  it was only today that I noticed in the 20 Lira  stamp shown above left, that in the background is Mount Vesuvius itself.  Surprisingly this Neapolitan  fisherman has not actually appeared on any of my ships, and I think this may be because he looks far too laid back,  leaning against  the ropes of his boat, whereas my "crews" have all been hard at work on various tasks.  I have used him as one of the characters peering out from between the pillars of the Leaning tower of Pisa though,  and he may well reappear in future in another role!

Detail from Leaning Tower of Pisa - see Landmarks on www.rachelmarkwick.co.uk

Tor read and see photos relating to the making of the Leaning Tower of Pisa collage please see my blog post of 10th March 2013.  Please note that the original of this was sold during my last exhibition at Gloucester Guildhall that year, but full size prints are available.

The Frigate Dom Fernando II E Gloria - Stamp collage inspired by a visit to Lisbon Maritime Museum

I went through a rather unproductive phase, in terms of actually making new work over the latter part 2017. But Spring has brought with it new energy, and ideas stored up over some years are now emerging in the form of new collages, including this one of the Frigate Dom Fernando II e Gloria. 

In November 2014, we made our first visit to Lisbon, and my love of ships as a subject for pictures  took us to the Maritime Museum in the Belem area, home also to the Monument of the Discoveries mentioned in a previous blog of  October 2016.The  museum houses a vast collection of  paintings and models of ships including this one of the Dom Fernando II e Gloria.

The museum also owns several paintings  including one by Roger Chapelet showing her in full sail, which has been useful in the making of my own stamp collage picture, featured here.
Stamps and  envelopes have been incorporated in this collage with the sky painted in watercolour and the rigging ink and pencil. As always, finding a crew was an interesting  challenge!This fully rigged  ship  built of teak in India in 1843 was the last frigate of the navy.  On her maiden voyage from Goa to Lisbon in 1845 she was armed with 18 guns.  She was used for transporting cargo, troops, passengers and "deportees to Angola and Mozambique". She was also used as a Naval artillery school and school of seamanship from 1865 until 1937.  She was partially destroyed by a fire in 1963 when she was the HQ of a children's home. In 1990 rebuilding commenced, to be  completed in 1998, and she can now be visited near Aveiro.  I hope to be able to do this one day!

 I discovered that the Dom Fernando II e Gloria  also features on Portuguese stamps issued in 1997.

John Piper - Liverpool Metropolitan cathedral, art and stamps - Inspiring!

A few years ago I  enjoyed the exhibition "John Piper in the 1930s - Abstraction on the Beach" at Dulwich Picture Gallery, so I  was pleased to find another exhibition of his work this year at Tate Liverpool, featuring collages, and other mixed media artworks. This was one of the highlights of our recent stay in this wonderful city, and a film about Piper's and  Rutyens' designs  for  stained glass for the Catholic cathedral, prompted us to revisit this awe inspiring  building!

In my own work using stamps in collages I have become familiar with subjects of stamps and noted that one of John Piper's paintings from 1940 also appeared  on a British stamp issued in 1968,

the church of St Mary Le  Port, Bristol  badly bombed in WW2.

The Metropolitan Cathedral was also the subject of a stamp as part of the British Cathedrals series of 1969, with a value of 1/6d.  Pre-Decimal Currency. 

John Piper used all sorts of materials in his work, including matchbox labels, paper doilies, string, wallpaper, but as far as I know, never postage stamps.  Visiting Liverpool and having seen this latest exhibition, some of the small craft moored in the Albert Dock also seemed  reminiscent of vessels featured in some of his work.  My own ship themed collages completed since seeing this exhibition, now also incorporate a few new materials, such as cotton and scrim for the rigging and additional painted elements.Matchbox labels? Not yet, but see my Ships page of www.rachelmarkwick.co.uk for latest collages. Thank you John Piper for the inspiration!

Monet and Architecture - Inspirational exhibition at the National Gallery in London until end July

The current exhibition was a wonderful reminder  of past experiences of seeing Monet's paintings and the locations which feature in his work, as well as discovering work I had never  seen before. Most of all, I enjoyed  comparing five versions of Rouen cathedral.   From  the upstairs room in a clothes shop opposite the cathedral, Monet painted more than 30 canvases over a period of two years, 1892-3,.setting  up his easel, screened off from the daily business of the shop. Although photography was, surprisingly, permitted at the NG, I did not take any photos while there, but include some of the images taken from a catalogue of a previous exhibition.   On a family holiday in 2010 we visited the cathedral in Rouen and also an exhibition of impressionist paintings at the Musee des Beaux Art.

Stamp issued in 1957 

Other memories  re-emerged on seeing Monet's paintings of the Normandy
coast in the NG.  Shown below right,  is  a fisherman's cottage on the clifftop near Varengeville, whose church we also visited in 2006.   In the churchyard is a wonderful mosaic dove on the grave of Georges Braque, whose friend Raoul Ubac  designed some of the stained glass windows in the church,  The area has associations with many artists.

Rouen Cathedral and one of the many paintings by Monet 

Monet's atmospheric paintings of Venice and London in  the mist and fog  also feature in the exhibition., together with  exotic gardens of  Italy and the South of France, but all in relation to architectural elements.  Most enjoyable!