PostNL will issue the Typical Dutch – cats stamp sheet on 12 August 2024. The issue is the 5th and last of this year in the Typical Dutch series. The multi-year series started in 2020 and in 2024 will be dedicated to the animals that we know best and that are closest to us. The 6 identical stamps have the value indication 1 for mail up to and including 20 grams with a destination within the Netherlands. The price for a sheet with 6 stamps is € 6.84.
The design of Typical Dutch – cats was created by senior graphic designer Adam Lane, executive creative director Edwin van Praet and concept director Huub van Veenhuijzen of Total Design from Amsterdam. With the help of artificial intelligence, a design was created with figurines in the shape of Delft blue pottery.
Earlier this year, 4 stamp sheets were published in the Typical Dutch series with images of cows, dogs, horses and songbirds.
Cats. The domestic cat (Felis silvestris catus) is descended from the African wild cat (Felis silvestris). The cat is one of the oldest pets of humans. It is estimated that humans first brought cats into their homes around 9,000 to 10,000 years ago, as a mouse exterminator and companion. According to research from 2022, there are around 3 million domestic cats in the Netherlands and 23 percent of all households own 1 or more cats. In addition to those 3 million domestic cats, there are approximately half a million stray cats in the cities. Large numbers of feral cats also live in rural areas. The size of the latter group is uncertain, estimates range from 135,000 to 1.2 million. Even with the most conservative estimate, the cat is the most common predator in the Netherlands. Every year, cats kill at least 18 million birds in our country. A commonly used classification of cats is based on colour (from white and black to brown and sand-coloured) and coat patterns (from plain and white with colour spots to tabby, tortoiseshell and patchwork patterns). Of the millions of cats in the Netherlands, only a small percentage belong to the approximately 60 different cat breeds that are recognised worldwide.
Delft Blue. The history of the development of Delftware is closely linked to oriental porcelain. Delft was one of the locations of the VOC, with warehouses where large stocks of this porcelain were also stored. Delft potters developed a ceramic product themselves that was comparable to oriental porcelain in shape, gloss and decoration. Delft Blue became very popular in a short time and experienced a heyday in the period 1650-1750 with around 100 pottery factories. Nowadays there are only a few factories that produce Delft Blue in the traditional way, including De Porceleyne Fles and Heinen Delfts Blauw. Traditional painting can be recognized by the brand mark on the bottom of the product.
Artificial intelligence. AI refers to learning computer systems. These AI systems are able to make extrapolations, decisions, choices and interpretations based on large amounts of data and algorithms. Developments in the field of artificial intelligence are moving fast and the applications can be found everywhere: from facial recognition on smartphones to self-driving cars and from smart thermostats to deep fakes (digitally manipulated images, sounds and text). A separate discipline within AI is generative art, in which the computer algorithm creates an original work of art or design.
The stamps of the stamp sheet Typically Dutch – cats depict 2 tabby domestic cats, a small one and a large one sitting right behind it. The portrait takes the form of a statuette of shiny Delft blue pottery. The image of the 2 cats was created using the AI program Midjourney, which creates images based on text descriptions. At the bottom of each stamp are the sorting hook, the year 2024, the country designation Netherlands and the value indication 1. At the top of each stamp is the logo of the Typically Dutch series, with a folded Dutch pennant on the left and right. On the sheet edge on the left, another section of the stamp image is repeated in a larger format. At the top of the sheet edge, the logo of Typically Dutch is again depicted, with a brief explanation of the relationship between humans and cats in the Netherlands to the right.
The design of Typically Dutch – cats was created by Total Design. This design agency from Amsterdam has been responsible for the Typically Dutch series since 2020. For the 2024 series, PostNL asked Total Design to elaborate on the theme of Delft Blue by combining photography and illustrations. Delft Blue did indeed appear on the stamps, but with a contemporary twist.
