Twelve Days of Christmas 2017

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Isle of Man – A festive set of twelve stamps to bring joy and cheer! This festive collection is presented by Isle of Man Post Office with best wishes and good cheer in the spirit of the popular Christmas song that inspired these lyrical illustrations by Catherine Rowe. In her first commission for Isle of Man Post Office, artist Catherine Rowe has done a wonderful job in capturing the spirit of Christmas in this set of twelve stamps. There is a stamp for each of the twelve days and Rowe has incorporated some intricate Celtic style detailing such as the Three Legs of Man and Manx Tartan as a small nod to the Island’s heritage and culture.TThe gorgeous, bold colour palette of the stamps is delicately contrasted through the use of metallic gold inks used on the numbers and detailing.

Taking inspiration from the well known Christmas song ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’, Rowe has managed to give these stamps a traditional Christmas warmth as well as a natural and earthy feel. Catherine Rowe studied Illustration at The Cambridge School of Art, graduating in 2013. She has since worked as a freelance illustrator, jewellery designer and now freelance artist, represented by Brighton based licensing agency Yellow House Art Licensing. Catherine works with the rare medium scraperboard, using it as an alternative to print making, a process she enjoyed during her time at University. “Scraperboard allows you to produce similar results to that of a relief print or an engraving, without the specialist equipment – or the mess!” All work is originally in black and white as is the nature of the medium, and is then scanned and coloured digitally using Photoshop and a graphics tablet. The illuminating issue text from writer Valerie Caine, details the origins of this well-known festive song, while Rowe gives an insight in to her inspirations and technique for coming up with the creations for these miniature works of art.

  • 19.10.2017
  • EJC Design
  • Lowe Martin
  • Offset Lithography plus hexachrome
  • Four plus metallic