2019-10-07 Mon

Leonard Cohen, the Canadian singer, songwriter, poet, and novelist will feature on three new stamps. Through them, the Canada Post will celebrate the late laureate of existential despair, with portraits displaying him in different stages of his life.

The Cohen stamps will number four million and only be available for a two-year period. Musical luminaries previously honored by Canada Post include Oscar Peterson, Joni Mitchell, Oliver Jones, Robert Charlebois, Ginette Reno, and Bruce Cockburn.

The three stamps were created by the Montreal graphic design firm Paprika. They portray the poet, novelist, and songwriter in three stages of his life and artistry. They are all images taken from portraits, with no typewriters or microphones that would allude to his vocations.

The stamps place the Hallelujah balladeer under, in front of and on top of prominent “COHEN" typography. The first stamp, “Silver,” uses a portrait taken by U.S. photographer Jack Robinson for Vogue magazine in 1967, the year that saw Judy Collins release a version of Cohen’s Suzanne and the appearance of Cohen at the Newport Jazz Festival. Cohen is in a crouch, looking up.

The Gold stamp is Cohen in serious “I’m Your Man” pose, greying in his mid-fifties. The silhouette is from a 1988 beach shot by the Frenchman Claude Gassian.

With the Bronze stamp, Cohen is placed on the lettering – sitting on his name, if not resting on his laurels. The portrait, circa 2012, was done by British photographer Platon. As with the two other stamps, Cohen is shown as back-lit and shined upon.

Visit philamart to view and purchase variety of stamps from all over the world.

Image Courtesy: Canada Post