31. 10. 2014

Issue of the commemorative postage stamps: WORKS OF ART ON POSTAGE STAMPS

On the 5th November, 2014 the Ministry of   Industry and Trade  of the Czech Republic will  issue three commemorative postage stamps from the series Works of Art on Postage Stamps:
1.  25 CZK   Jakub Schikaneder (1855-1924)
    Street in Winter, 1900-1910 
    Kodl Gallery 
    Engraver:  Václav Fajt
    Colours: yellow, light brown, red, blue, black
2.  29 CZK  Jaromír Funke (1896-1945)
    Solitude and Spectacles, CA 1924
    Coupon: „The Nude“ photograph,1927 and the text: 1896 Funke 1945
    Autor of graphic arrangement: Prof. Zdeněk Ziegler
    Engraving of FDC: Václav Fajt
    Colours: offset – CMYK
3.  37 CZK   Salvador Dalí (1904-1989)
    Leda Atomica, 1949
    Dalí´s Theater and Museum Figueres
    Engraver: Martin Srb
    Author of FDC: Jaromír Knotek
    Colours: offset – CMYK, recess print black; Copyright: OOA-S
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Jakub Schikaneder was born in Prague on the 27th February, 1855 and died on the 15th November, 1924, in Prague as well. He grew up in an artistic environment, where his aunt, cousin and older brother Charles worked as actors and singers. Success and fame, however, often alternated with decline and poverty. Here we find the beginnings of a strong social ethos, which appears in Schikaneder’s paintings. After graduating from the Prague Academy, he traveled around Europe, which greatly influenced his future work.
He received important recognition both at home and in the world in 1882 with his painting “Přísaha Lollardů” (The Lollards’ Oath) with dimensions of 250 x 400 cm. Even the leading art critic Miroslav Tyrš described the painting as an extraordinary work of art and its sale abroad brought a substantial financial reward.
From the 1880s, his paintings are full of social comprehension, which can be seen, for example, in the paintings “Dozvuky zimy” (Aftermath of Winter), “Plečka” (The Weeder), “Výměnkářka” (The Retired Peasant Woman), and results in his final masterpiece “Vražda v domě” (A Murder in the House). In 1885 Schikaneder was appointed as an assistant to František Ženišek at the School of Applied Arts in Prague, and later led a special school for painting flowers. After Ženíšek left the Prague Academy in 1896, he took over the studio of decorative painting. The position of professor allowed him to take several study trips in Europe in the 1890s. He repeatedly visited Paris, but he also went as far as Sicily. In 1895, together with Josef Thomayer, he toured England and Scotland. He also worked on the decoration of the interiors of the expositions of the College of Applied Arts at the World Exhibitions in Paris in 1900 and four years later in St. Louis.
At the end of the first decade of the 20th century, Schikaneder withdrew from public life, lived in seclusion and did not exhibit his paintings in public any more. He nevertheless continued teaching at the School of Decorative Arts, even during World War I.
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Jaromír Funke was born on the  1st  August, 1896 in Skuteč and died on the 22nd  March, 1945 in Prague. He was one of the most important Czech photographers of the first half of the 20th  century and one of the world’s major pioneers of avant-garde photography. Together with Josef Sudek and Jaroslav Rössler, he was a member of the Czechoslovak modernist movement of photography between the world wars. In 1924, together with Josef Sudek and Adolf Schneeberger, he founded the Czech Photographic Society, which aimed at using purely photographic processes, breaking free from the influence of graphics. The photographic events of his time were influenced not only by his work, but also by his extensive theoretical, critical, organizational, editorial and especially pedagogical activities.
Although Funke was enchanted by modern architecture, he did not shy away from photographing older monuments. At the request of the Municipality of Cologne, a series of photographs of the St. Bartholomew Cathedral originated, first issued in 1943. It contained at least 56 shots of the church and included both overall views of the church, as well as views of the interior and details of the interior decoration and furniture. He died a few months before the end of the Second World War as its indirect victim. 
Salvador Felip Jacint Dalí i Domènech was born on the 11th  May, 1904 in Figureres, Spain and died on the 23rd  January, 1989 in the same place. He was an important Catalan painter, known for his surrealist works. Dalí was an artist of enormous talent and imagination. As a native of Catalonia, he insisted that he had Arabian roots. He claimed that his ancestors were descendants of the Moors who invaded Spain in the year 711 This is what Dalí saw as the cause of his love for all that is golden and excessive, his passion for luxury and his love of Oriental clothes. However, Dali’s eccentric and theatrical behavior sometimes overshadowed his work. He did unusual things just to get attention, which sometimes tired both his admirers and his critics. On the other hand, this triggered attention led to the recognition of his work by the general public and to increased sales of his works.
Dali’s works are known for a striking combination of bizarre, dreamlike images with an excellent draftsmanship and painterly expression, for which Dalí found inspiration in the works of the old masters of the Renaissance. His best-known work, “The Persistence of Memory,” was completed in 1931. Dalí created more than 1,500 paintings during his career. Besides that, he also illustrated books, designed theater sets and costumes, created dozens of sculptures, and participated in various other projects. Salvador Dalí’s artistic repertoire also included film and photography. He collaborated with Walt Disney on the animated short film Destino, which was after its introduction in 2003, long after Dali’s death, nominated for the Academy Award. Among his achievements in the field of architecture is a museum in the village of Port Lligat, near the Spanish town of Cadaqués, and the modern pavilion Dream of Venus at the World EXPO 1939, which contained many unusual sculptures and statues.
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The  stamp, sized 40 x 50 mm (25 CZK) has been printed by the Post Printing House in Prague by recess print from flat plates in printing sheets of 4 pcs. The stamp, sized 50 x 40 mm (29 CZK) has been printed by the Post Pringing House in Prague by offset in arranged printing sheets of 4 pcs and the stamp, sized  40 x 50 mm (37 CZK) has been printed by the Post Printing House in Prague by recess print  from flat plates in combination with offset in printing sheets of 4 pcs.
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There  will be  3  First Day Covers incl. commemorative cancellations. In the picture part of the cover with affixed 25 CZK stamp (a) is the Shikaneder´s painting „Seating Woman  in a White Bonnet“ (1885), on the cover with 29 CZK (b,) is used the Funke´s photograph „Plates“ from the year 1923 and the last motive on the cover to the stamp 37 CZK (c) is a drawing of the Dalí´s Theatre in Figueres by Jaromír Knotek. The covers are printed by recess print from flat plates in brown-black (a), black-grey (b), and brown (c). On the cachet to the stamp 25 CZK is a horse-drawn coach and the text: Praha, 5.11.2014, the cachet to the stamp 29 CZK shows a detail of the „Frames“ photograph and the text: Praha,  5.11.2014 , and on  the cachet to the last stamp 37 CZK is the Dalí´s signature and the text: Praha, 5.11.2014.
The stamps are valid  from 5th November, 2014.
Issue of the commemorative postage stamps
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WORKS OF ART ON POSTAGE STAMPS
Date of issue:   5th November, 2014
Engravers:   1) Václav Fajt, 2) Václav Fajt, 3) Martin Srb
Picture size:   40 x 50  mm (25 CZK, 37 CZK), 50 x 40  mm (29 CZK) 
Face value:   25 CZK, 29 CZK, 37 CZK
Method of the printing of the stamps:   recess print from flat plates (25 CZK)
offset (29 CZK)
recess print from flat plates in combination with offset
Method of the printing of FDC´s:   Recess print from flat plates in a) brown-black, b) black-grey, d) brown
Colours of stamps:   1) yellow, light brown, red, blue, black 2) offset – CMYK
3) offset – CMYK, recess print  black
Number of stamps in the printing sheets:   4 pcs 
Number of the FDC´s:   3 pcs
Subjects of the stamps:
1) Street in Winter, 1900-1910
2) Solitude and Spectacles, CA 1924
3) Leda Atomica, 1949
Subjects of the FDC´s:
1) the Shikaneder´s painting „Seating Woman in a White Bonnet (1885)
2) the Funke´s photograph „Plates“ from the year 1923
3) a drawing of the Dalí´s Theatre in Figueres by Jaromír Knotek
Editor:   Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic
Producer:   Post Printing House, Ortenovo nám. 16, CZ-170 04 Praha 7
Supplier:   PostFila, Export Department, Ortenovo nám. 16,  CZ-170 24 Praha 7