drawanyway.com

It is a great honour for an illustrator to be asked to design stamps for his or her country. It’s also a challenge that many have risen to admirably, bringing forth some superb examples of art within the constraints of a tiny canvas.

I’m pretty resigned to the fact that I’m probably not going to be asked to join their ranks any time soon, but that’s no reason why I shouldn’t have a good time pretending. Indeed, one of my very favourite artists, Donald Evans, did just that, on a very grand scale.

Stamps are the ideal subject for the Draw Anyway artist. They’re so very small that they will not take more than a couple of minutes. You can put as much imagination into them as you have the energy for. Evans, for example, invented non-existent countries and made commemorative sets for events that never happened.

‘Why bother?’, you might be asking. Well, personally, I think there is something very attractive about a small picture - and especially several small pictures together in a grid - and this is the ideal excuse to try that out.

But also, it’s fun. Say it’s a friend’s birthday for example. You could design a stamp just for him or her, reflecting special interests or character traits.

Because of course, you’ll already have decorated the envelope, won’t you?