Variety Of Subject In 19 Designs

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32077, 27 August 1969, Page 1

Variety Of Subject In 19 Designs

Zffew Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, August 26. The Queen. Maori culture, national parks and New Zealand butterflies, moths and fish will feature on the 1970 definitive stamp issue, designs of which were shown by the Post Office in Wellington today.

The issue will replace the set which has been in use since 1960 with only minor changes during the decimal currency conversion in 1967, and occasional additions.

Designs for 19 stamps in bright colours were shown at a function in Wellington today. Two more, those for 30c and 50c, are still being designed, making an issue of 21 new stamps. The 10c Royal stamp, showing a profile silhouette of the Queen’s head and the New Zealand coat of arms, has been given priority of printing and the Post Office hopes to issue the stamp when the Queen is visiting New Zealand next March. Smaller stamps in the series would be issued tn May, 1970, and the higher values would follow at intervals during the year, said the Director-Gen-eral of the Poet Office (Mr G. Searle).

Hie designs are by five of the seven artists who were chosen to work on the series by their success in an art competition held by the Post Office late last year. Eighty-eight artists took part in the competition. Of the six prize winners and the one merit award winner chosen to work on final designs, only one was previously known to the Post Office. The choice of design was final and it was intended to call tenders for printing as soon as possible, he said. The set was so pleasant that it was most unlikely there would be any sort of outcry as there was upon the first publication of decimal coin designs. If there was, the stamp design, unlike a coin design, could be replaced before long, said Mr Searle. “It is not intended to retain this definitive issue for a long period as has been done in the past,” he said. “Also, we are considering changing the issue theme by theme in the

future so that it may be unlikely there will be a complete change of the definitive issue in any one year again.” The new stamps will be in two sizes: the same size as the present small stamps, and double that size.

MR A. J. BISLEY, senior lecturer in graphic design at the School of Fine Arts, discusses the new stamps in this article.