{"id":339,"date":"2013-08-29T09:30:56","date_gmt":"2013-08-29T13:30:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?p=339"},"modified":"2024-06-13T13:45:17","modified_gmt":"2024-06-13T17:45:17","slug":"artist-paints-portraits-of-flags","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/artist-paints-portraits-of-flags\/","title":{"rendered":"Artist paints portraits of flags"},"content":{"rendered":"

By James Breig<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Laura<\/a>
Laura Stutzman<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Painter Laura Stutzman must know how to pose flags. After all, her images of them are reproduced by the hundreds of thousands. Her second set of four flag images is now available from the U.S. Postal Service. The first quartet showed flags at different times of day; the new issue shows them in different seasons.<\/p>\n

The artist recently answered some questions about art and flags:<\/p>\n

Q. How did you come to design stamps?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A. <\/strong>I was commissioned because of a random online search [by the USPS] for illustrated flags, and there was no doubt that my website had the most samples of that particular topic. I had gotten flag art assignments over the years. It\u2019s not uncommon for the flag to be illustrated, rather than photographed, to capture it in different moods and at interesting angles.<\/p>\n

\"Flags<\/a>
Flags in four times of day<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Q. What guidelines does the USPS require you to follow, and in what ways do they limit\u00a0you?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A.<\/strong> This was a particularly sensitive project because, in addition to the rules of the stamp world, there are specific protocols for the treatment of the flag in imagery<\/a>. The way the flag is lit at night is rather rigid, and the rule says the flag should read left to right (stars first, then stripes). Those are just two of the restrictions.<\/p>\n

Q. Do you have a special interest\u00a0in flags, or is it just a coincidence that you have done two series?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A.<\/strong> I clearly have a fetish…\u00a0of the most wholesome variety<\/em>. I\u2019ve always felt the American flag<\/a> had a personality that could be captured, so I\u2019ve approached it as I would a portrait.<\/p>\n

\"Flags<\/a>
Flags in four seasons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Q. When you began the new set of flag stamps, what was your\u00a0creative process?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A. <\/strong>First, sketches and layouts of possible solutions. The composition is important at this stage, and the relationship between the four stamps is explored. As a set, they need to have a familial feel to work as a series. These are then reviewed by the Stamp Advisory Committee. This is when you find out how far off you are. You make the necessary adjustments to accommodate those suggestions. This happens over a period of several months as the Committee meets on a quarterly schedule. Then all that\u2019s left to do is the finished painting.<\/p>\n

Q. What satisfaction do you get\u00a0from designing stamps that will be used by millions of people?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A.<\/strong> It\u2019s an honor to be a part of something so integral to everyday American culture. Stamps are currency, and that\u2019s a far more lofty goal than I ever hoped to attain. It\u2019s really the biggest piece of my career as an illustrator, in spite of the size.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By James Breig Painter Laura Stutzman must know how to pose flags. After all, her images of them are reproduced by the hundreds of thousands. Her second set of four flag images is now available from the U.S. Postal Service. The first quartet showed flags at different times of day; the new issue shows them… continue<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[10,107,110,109,108,111],"class_list":["post-339","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-history-lessons","tag-american-flag","tag-laura-stutzman","tag-painting","tag-stamps","tag-u-s-postal-service","tag-usps"],"yoast_head":"\nArtist paints portraits of flags - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/artist-paints-portraits-of-flags\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Artist paints portraits of flags - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By James Breig Painter Laura Stutzman must know how to pose flags. 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