About This Stamp
Ten stamps from the U.S. Postal Service celebrate the beauty of American gardens.
Each stamp features a photograph of a small but evocative area of one of ten gardens: The gardens include: Biltmore Estate Gardens (North Carolina); Brooklyn Botanic Garden (New York); Chicago Botanic Garden (Illinois); Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens (Maine); Dumbarton Oaks Garden (District of Columbia); The Huntington Botanical Gardens (California); Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park (Florida); Norfolk Botanical Garden (Virginia); Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens (Ohio); and Winterthur Garden (Delaware).
The love of gardening goes back to the earliest years of our country, inspiring the creation of some of America’s most iconic gardens, which remain among our most cherished and influential designed landscapes. From the 19th century to today, landscape designers have continued that tradition. Conceived for many reasons — for food or pleasure, as places of education and scientific study, as an expression of the owners’ artistic sensibilities, as spaces for the public to commune with nature, or simply for the love of gardening — American gardens capture our imagination and satisfy a yearning for beauty and order.
Every year, millions of Americans visit gardens, public and private. Many public gardens are open year-round; in addition to the plants and trees on display, classes, exhibits, and other events encourage visitors to experiment and create their own gardens. During the spring and summer, planned tours and open garden days allow visitors to step into private enclaves and see how homeowners have enhanced and designed their spaces, be they large estates, small suburban yards, or rooftop aeries.
Art director Ethel Kessler designed the stamps with photos taken by Allen Rokach between 1996 and 2014.
The American Gardens stamps are being issued as Forever® stamps in panes of 20. These Forever stamps will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail® one-ounce price.
Stamp Art Director, Stamp Designer
Ethel Kessler
Ethel Kessler is an award-winning designer and art director who has worked with corporations, museums, public and private institutions, professional service organizations, and now, the United States Postal Service.
After earning a B.F.A. in visual communications from the Maryland Institute College of Art, Kessler worked as a graphic designer and project manager for the exhibits division of the United States Information Agency. Her work was distributed internationally on subjects such as Immigration, Entrepreneurship, Renovation of American Cities, and the Bicentennial of 1976. She was also responsible for exhibits in Morocco, Botswana, and El Salvador.
In 1981, she established Kessler Design, Inc., for which she is creative director and designer. Clients have included the Clinton Government reorganization, the Smithsonian Institution, National Geographic Television, the National Park Service, and the American Institute of Architects.
She has been an art director for the U.S. Postal Service’s stamp development program for more than 25 years. As an art director for USPS, Kessler has been responsible for creating more than 500 stamp designs, including the Breast Cancer Research stamp illustrated by Whitney Sherman. Issued in 1998, the stamp is still on sale and has raised more $98 million for breast cancer research. Other Kessler projects include the popular and highly regarded Nature of America 120 stamp series, a collaboration with nationally acclaimed nature illustrator John Dawson, the 12-year Lunar New Year series with Kam Mak, the American Filmmaking: Behind the Scenes 10 stamps issued in 2003, a 2016 pane of stamps celebrating the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, and the 2023 stamp honoring Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. And many, many others.
Photographer
Allen Rokach
Allen Rokach (1942–2021) was a preeminent nature, garden, and travel photographer. His 40-year career included stints as director of photography at the New York Botanical Garden and senior photographer for Southern Living magazine. His work appeared in many prestigious publications including National Geographic, Audubon, Coastal Living, Fine Gardening, Garden Design, Horticulture, and The New York Times.
An active photographic educator throughout his career, Mr. Rokach initiated and coordinated the Certificate Program in Nature and Garden Photography at the New York Botanical Garden and taught photography at numerous institutions, including the American Museum of Natural History, the Biltmore Estate, the Chicago Botanic Garden, and the Winterthur Museum & Gardens. In 1988, Rokach founded the Center for Nature Photography, which sponsors instructional nature and garden photography workshops.
With his wife, Anne Millman, Rokach co-authored 15 books and articles on aspects of photography, nature, and travel, including Focus on Flowers: Discovery & Photographing Beauty in Gardens & Wild Places (Abbeville Press), which won the 1991 award for photography from the Garden Writers Association of America (now Garden Communications International). His photographs have also been published in many other books.
Rokach’s work has been exhibited at the Brooklyn Museum, New York Academy of Sciences, Wave Hill, and the Horticultural Society of New York. Existing photographs by Rokach were featured on the 2020 American Gardens stamp issuance, the 2021 Garden Beauty stamps, and the 2024 Autumn Colors issuance.