New Issue: Colours of Switzerland (Switzerland)

Switzerland will be issuing some new stamps on Monday. It is called Colours of Switzerland and the stamps show... well, lots of colours with different light and shade. The colours have poetic names, like "Snow White, "Alpine Meadow Green", "Glacier Cave Blue", "Larch Gold", "Summit Grey", "Alpine Glow Orange", "Alpine Lake Turquoise" and "Alpine Rose Red".

The WOPA website has a short interviewer with the graphic designer, Felix Pfäffli, which I have included below: Where does the Alpine glow orange come from?

From a colourful stamp set Swiss Post asked me to design. I was thrilled to receive the request, because playing with colours is exactly the kind of thing I love to do. It was also a unique challenge that taught me a lot. I was excited to dive right into the topic.

How did you approach the task?

I designed three potential sets. After one of the variants had been selected for the stamps, the detailed work began: I got out my colour swatches and experimented with individual shades and lettering. I quickly realized that it was less about the actual colours than the feelings and memories they evoked. So I also used gradients, which added two or three extra shades to the main colour. I wanted to explore the question of how to bring colour and atmosphere together. All the shades I used are found in nature from the warm evening light in the Alps to the deep turquoise of mountain lakes.

Were there any particular challenges involved?

A few! Firstly, the colours themselves or to be more precise, the gradients. It’s not easy to print gradients for special colours. Every stamp is printed in a carefully selected special colour that defines the core colour, while the border colours are produced using the CMYK model. So every stamp is an attempt to translate a feeling into colour. Another challenge was the format: it’s ambitious to convey so much emotion on such a small space. But I was surprised at the amount of impact a tiny printed product can have. It was also important to incorporate the names of the colours in other words, the text. They reflect Swiss values and work in harmony with the actual colours of the stamp to create an impact. To help achieve this effect, the names are printed in the four national languages on the white lower border of the stamp, separated by fine perforations.

What is your personal connection to stamps?

For me, stamps are a lovely reminder of my grandfather: we spent hours sorting stamps together. He taught me a lot and knew everything about the different halftone screens, special colours and any printing errors. That left a deep impression on me.

That is very interesting and it definitely helps me to understand what Felix was trying to do. But I'm not really convinced by it. Feelings I can understand. "Playing with colours" - definitely! But "Swiss values" - really? And all the poetic names for the colours - sorry, but they could just as easily be Cold White, Grass-Coloured Green, Rock Grey or Pink-Red. They could be anything. Felix says "all the shades I used are found in nature" and that is obviously true but it doesn't mean anything because almost all colours (apart from a few impossible colours and things like neon colours) are found in nature. So it's the description that really speaks to people and makes it feel Swiss and connected to nature, not the colours themselves. It's all about interpretation. We're told to imagine glaciers, caves or lakes, but I don't see them and the only "values" I see are the prices. I would definitely have liked to see the other two designs because they may have been more appealing to me.

So, what do I think about the set as a whole? Design Quality - I actually think the idea behind the design is really good, but the final result feels a bit disappointing. The stamps are basically just colour gradients, which look like something you find in digital design software. They’re neat and clean but they're not inspiring and when I first saw them they didn’t really feel like stamps about nature — they just looked like blocks of colour fading into other colours.

Also, the colours themselves feel quite cold and flat. When I think of nature, I imagine warm, textured colours that feel alive, but these look quite smooth and artificial. 2/10

Theme and Subject Choice - The theme — colours from nature — is actually a great idea. Playing with colour can be really interesting, especially on stamps where space is limited.

But the way they chose to show the colours feels uninspired. Instead of gradients, they could have explored colours of nature through close-ups of real things, like a macro photograph of moss or leaves for green, sunlight through glacier ice for blue, larch needles in autumn for gold, a close-up of alpine flowers for red, ripples in a mountain lake for turquoise and so on. That way the colours would still be the focus, but they would feel connected to the real world. 5/10

Historical and Cultural Relevance - I understand that Switzerland has a strong connection to mountains and nature, so the theme does make sense culturally. The Alps are a big part of Swiss identity.

But the stamps don’t really show anything specifically Swiss except the names. Without the poetic descriptions, these would just be colours that could come from anywhere. The stamps don’t actually show landscapes, plants, or anything recognisable from Switzerland. And they don't speak to me of "Swiss values" or even the Swiss landscape. On the more positive side, I have to admit that the use of four languages is a great touch. 4/10 Innovation and Creativity - The concept is interesting, but the execution doesn’t feel very creative. It feels like the designers had a good idea — exploring nature through colour — but then stopped halfway and just used gradients. That makes it feel a bit safe and not very adventurous.

Also, the poetic descriptions like “Alpine Meadow Green” or “Glacier Cave Blue” tell you what to think. It’s like the stamps are trying to convince you they’re meaningful instead of actually showing something that makes you feel it yourself. 3/10

Collectability - I think collectors might like these because they’re unusual and different from most stamps. Minimal designs can sometimes become quite iconic, although I'm not sure these will. 3/10

Personal appeal - If I’m being honest, these stamps don’t really make me feel anything. They’re tidy and different, but they’re not very inspiring.

Nature should feel warm, alive, and interesting, but these colours feel quite cold and empty. The poetic names try to add meaning, but without them the stamps wouldn’t really say anything.

I appreciate that the designer tried something different, and there’s nothing wrong with experimenting. But I think if you’re going to do something this simple, it should still make people feel something — and these just don’t. 1/10 Overall score - 18/60 That said, I have felt inspired by these stamps to create a British equivalent! If there was a "Colours of Britain", what might it look like? I'm afraid I'm not very good at making up flowery descriptions, but I have come up with a set I'm very proud of! I think it's very British - do you agree?

I replaced the King's head with my cat so it's more obvious that these are a bit of fun.