Stamps with a Story

The American public takes an intense interest in the subjects that appear on stamps, but few people are privy to the twists and turns that stamp art takes before it appears on millions of envelopes. Each stamp begins with a series of sketches and drawings, as artists and designers explore a wide array of concepts and experiment with different approaches. Drawn from the files of U.S. Postal Service designers, the artwork shown here offers a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of several high-profile stamps—and at the controversies they sometimes provoke.