Stamps

Swiss Post’s commitment to art

Last year, the “Canvas” special stamp highlighted the art collection, which is steeped in tradition, and Swiss Post’s new art strategy. This year, attention now shifts to the second element in this commitment to art – the partnerships with the “Art in the periphery” events.

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“Art in the periphery” is a series of temporary, curated art events held outside urban hubs. Artists are invited to engage with the relevant locations. Landscapes are reinterpreted, attracting a wider audience.

But for this special stamp, the artist Monica Ursina Jäger didn’t choose a specific place but instead focused on the theme of meadows. The artist believes this design perfectly illustrates the overlap between natural habitat and cultural achievement. Meadows are usually created thanks to people and only continue to exist with their help. Art projects have also often been created on meadows in peripheral regions, continuing the dialogue between natural processes and cultural achievement.

The print’s special feature is the colour used: it’s the first stamp ever printed with chlorophyll pigments – in other words, the substance responsible for the green colour of plants. This means the stamp is completely natural and “living”. The green will change over time, depending on the effect of light.

Find out how the stamp was created in this video.

Sheetlet of 8 stamps
Sheetlet of 8 stamps

Buy the stamps
The stamps can be found at postshop.ch

Art print

A limited run of 200 matching art prints on Rives handmade paper (300 gm2) is available. The art edition by the artist Monica Ursina Jäger doesn’t just explore the theme of nature, but also works with nature itself by using the living material chlorophyll. In collaboration with the lithography studio Thomi Wolfensberger in Zurich, the tradition of lithography was combined with experimental use of natural pigments. The same chlorophyll pigments were used for this art print as for the stamp. In fine overlapping layers, plant-related designs and different concentrations of green deepen to create an organic carpet. Real grass and stems were placed directly on the printing stone. Exposing the art print to sunlight will result in subtle colour changes over time. Nature, time, tradition and the present day are all incorporated into this work of art, innovatively symbolizing the periphery. Each of these works of art is hand-signed and numbered by Monica Ursina Jäger. Size: 50 × 38 cm.

The print is supplied unframed. The price is 220 francs, including shipping costs within Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein. Deliveries cannot be made abroad.

Art print for Swiss Post’s commitment to art
Art print

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Two works by Monica Ursina Jäger have been part of the Swiss Post art collection for several years. The art collection is curated in close dialogue with the artists, and follows their works and themes. Collaborating with an artist who has spent a long time exploring the theme of chlorophyll proved the ideal choice for the challenge of visualizing the concept of “periphery”.

Swiss Post’s commitment to art first-day cover

Technical information

Sales

Philately: from 28.4.2022 to 30.6.2023 or while stocks last

Branches: from 5.5.2022 to 30.6.2023 or while stocks last

Validity

Unlimited from 5.5.2022

Printing

Offset, 1 special colour + chlorophyll and peach stone pigments; Gutenberg AG, Schaan, Principality of Liechtenstein

Sizes

Stamps: 32.5 × 40 mm

Sheetlet: 192 × 115 mm 

(2 rows of 4 stamps)

Paper

White stamp paper on backing paper, with optical brightener, self-adhesive, 196 gm²

Perforation

13¼ : 13½

Design

Stamp, artist: Monica Ursina Jäger, Zurich

Sheetlet, designer: Martina Brassel, Zurich