DISELLO

6TH DISELLO COMPETITION 2019

For the sixth year in a row, Correos has organised the National Stamp Design Competition, which was held in 2019 and attracted 1,646 participants. On this occasion the participation in the general category (over 18 years old) increased with 892 entries with respect to the junior category (between 12 and 17 years old) with 754 designs.

As in the previous edition, the theme was free, with participants allowed to let their imaginations run wild.

Stamp design is always a challenge to the imagination, as apart from the art, so much information has to be brought together in such a small space (8 cm2); a doubly difficult task which the participants handled with aplomb, depicting a range of different stories.

A panel of judges drawn from the world of design and illustration chose 20 finalists in each category, and another 20 were voted on by the public. From this list of 80 works, 40 in each category, the panel decided on the winners of the 6th National Stamp Design Competition 2019:

1st Prize in the general category, David Pavón Benitez

1st prize in the junior category, María Campo Barrio, student at the Niño Jesús Burgos School (Burgos).

The winning stamp in the general category shows and drawing named The little Envelope and his dog go to class, who, through his human characteristics, we can imagine as boy with a rucksack on his way to his first day of school. It’s the beginning of a story that leaves the recipient of a letter with one of these stamps free to imagine how it might end.

In the junior category, the piece was defined by the artist as: “My drawing is a girl lying down on the grass relaxing.” The drawing is a colourful felt-tip pen and pencil drawing with an original and innocent style, which transports us back to childhood, a time when the most important thing is enjoying every moment, including those in which we are not doing anything at all by taking in the nature that surrounds us.

Both winners will have the satisfaction of seeing their respective designs in circulation, as Correos will produce and issue stamps bearing the winning designs in 2020. Like last year, as part of Correos’ commitment to strengthen stamp design and make it more accessible to the public, as well as seeing her stamp issued in 2020 the winner of the general category will have the opportunity to design other philatelic items over the year (stamps, postmarks, first day covers, etc.).

We can enjoy all the finalist designs, including the two winners, in an exhibition which will begin in Valencia, from 5 February to 10 March.

The entry period will soon open for the 7th National Stamp Design Competition 2020 with the theme ‘a stamp for the climate’, one of the ways that Correos promotes the value of stamps as a medium of artistic expression, for telling stories and sharing culture, in addition to their obvious role in postage.