Artist Statement on the 2004-2005 Kwanzaa stamp.
Daniel Minter 12-2004
It is an honor for any artist to be
chosen to create artwork for a United States Postal Service stamp. I
feel particularly honored to be called to the task of creating this
Kwanzaa stamp. It carries a cultural significance that goes far
beyond the reach of a .37-cent postal stamp. It takes with it a
set of values that have been used to build communities in Africa for
thousands of years, now re-woven in this country to bring us "The First
Harvest" Kwanzaa: a celebration of culture and community. I
think of all of my artwork as being an expression of my culture and
community, so the idea of reinterpreting that to fit in a 1-inch frame
appealed to me on a very personal level.
In choosing symbols to represent
Kwanzaa, the number seven is primary. Seven is the number of
principles in the N'guzo Saba, or the seven principles to live by
throughout the year.
In the Kwanzaa stamp, I used seven
figures to represent Ujima, which means community. Two mothers,
Imani, which means faith, and Nia, which means purpose, are holding the
community together. One is a physical mother, and one a spiritual
mother. Both of them wear crowns of fabric to distinguish
themselves, and atop each crown is a bird. This Sankofa bird
looks to the past to understand the present, and never forgets from
where it came. They are Kuumba, or creativity, ready to fly.
The other five figures look to the
left, the right, forward and back, they look to each other. They are
Umoja, or unity, and Ujamma, symbols for cooperative work and
economics. They all wear robes that are blowing in the wind like
flags, all moving in the same direction. They represent Kujichagulia,
self-determination.
The colors red, black, green, gold,
and yellow represent the continent of Africa. Red is for the
blood that we have shed, black is for our people, green is for the land
and growth, gold is for wealth and prosperity, and yellow is for the
sun, or the future. The blue in the center represents the mother,
the source of life, the ocean.
When these colors and patterns are
displayed together on the stamp panel, they form a quilt of the sort
that our mothers and grandmothers made. This Kwanzaa stamp is
continuing a quilt that our grandmothers started long ago when they
took forgotten pieces of a fabric and brought them together to stitch
something new, from something very old.
Thank you again for the opportunity
to create such an expression for such a people. And again, it has
been my honor.
Daniel Minter