Ottoman Stamps
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When I was a toddler my parents moved to Turkey, where my father was a copper-mining consultant for the Turkish government for two years. I was only a year old when we traveled there so I don't remember anything about the experience, but for the rest of my family, it was the foreign adventure they all shared. My childhood was spiced with exotic recollections from my older sisters and parents, and the lore they created became a part of my own history. Perhaps because of this pre-conscious experience, languages that I cannot read have always held a great fascination for me. I see the symbols and know that they hold meaning for others. To know that I am ignorant of that significance is somehow thrilling in a way that is hard to articulate. It's like a door opening onto a world I know nothing about, not even the first level of literacy. It promises whole worlds to understand, if only I had more lifetimes to explore.
Like many schoolchildren in the 1940's and the1950's, my sisters collected postage stamps to broaden their awareness. As the youngest of the family, I inherited all my sister's collections when they got married and left home. Stamp collecting was an introduction to the world of the miniature and I was intrigued by the tiny encapsulations of history and culture.
Over the last few years, I have produced a series of relief print replicas of postage stamps, beginning with Japanese issues of the World War II era. Recent events in the Balkans rekindled my interest in the Turks and I produced this print from the old Ottoman Empire stamps of the nineteenth century.
Like many schoolchildren in the 1940's and the1950's, my sisters collected postage stamps to broaden their awareness. As the youngest of the family, I inherited all my sister's collections when they got married and left home. Stamp collecting was an introduction to the world of the miniature and I was intrigued by the tiny encapsulations of history and culture.
Over the last few years, I have produced a series of relief print replicas of postage stamps, beginning with Japanese issues of the World War II era. Recent events in the Balkans rekindled my interest in the Turks and I produced this print from the old Ottoman Empire stamps of the nineteenth century.
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Image Size: 4" x 5"
Paper Size: 10" x 13" Paper Type: Rives Lightweight |
Edition Size: varies, see above
Inks Used: Date cut: |
