NPM & Postal History Objects Come to Newberry College in South Carolina
By Alexander Haimann, Collections Specialist
At the invitation of Mick Zais, a stamp collector and President of Newberry College, I traveled to Newberry, South Carolina for a week this past November to be a guest lecturer at the college. Incorporating dozens of different stamp and postal history objects, I presented to hundreds of students (freshmen through seniors) in fourteen different Graphic & Web Design, History and Sociology classes.
During my stay at Newberry, Tania Sosiak, an Associate Professor of graphic design, organized a “charrette” for her advanced graphic design students. Following a brief presentation about the National Postal Museum and postal history, Professor Sosiak and I laid out the parameters of the task: each student had to design a postage stamp incorporating one or more design elements from at least two objects found on the National Postal Museum’s website. The catch was that this stamp design had to be completed in 24 hours! These Newberry College graphic design students (pictured below) did not disappoint!
Starting Thursday, December 10th, the National Postal Museum’s Blog will feature each student’s work and an explanation of the influences and motivations behind it. Check back to see what they put together!
About the Author
Alexander T. Haimann, Collections Specialist & Web Projects Developer at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum, collects and writes primarily about the stamps and postal history of the U.S. during the first one hundred years of stamp production (1847-1947). Additionally, he develops internet based education projects and exhibits for the National Postal Museum. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Stamp Dealers Association, the Chair of the American Philatelic Society’s Young Philatelic Leaders Fellowship and the publicist for the United State Philatelic Classics Society. His national and international society memberships include the American Philatelic Society, United States Stamp Society, Collectors Club of New York and the Royal Philatelic Society London.
