About This Stamp
Celebrate the joys of love with this stamp from the U.S. Postal Service® in the ever-popular Love series.
On the stamp, 12 colorful hearts visually express love’s joyful, bountiful nature. The color palette — red, purple, orange, and pink — is intended to create a happy and positive feeling.
How the familiar heart-shaped symbol came to be associated with the human heart, which it does not resemble, is a mystery. However, its connection with love is very clear, as the heart is where people believe feelings reside. Today, wherever it appears — as an artistic motif, in religious symbolism, or as an expression of affection or support — a heart is instantly recognizable as a representation of love, signifying romantic attachment as well as a passion or affection for people, places, causes, or ideas.
The Postal Service™ has successfully captured the essence of love ever since issuing the first stamp in the series in 1973. Though the stamps are released early in the year, they are not just for Valentine’s Day but can be used to deliver love at any season.
Art director Antonio Alcalá designed the stamp.
The Hearts Blossom stamp was issued as a Forever® stamp. This Forever stamp will always be equal to the current First-Class Mail® one-ounce price.
Stamp Art Director, Designer, and Typographer
Antonio Alcalá
Antonio Alcalá served on the Postmaster General’s Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee from 2010 until 2011, when he left to become an art director for the U.S. Postal Service's stamp development program.
He is founder and co-owner of Studio A, a design practice working with museums and arts institutions. His clients include: the National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, National Portrait Gallery, National Museum of Women in the Arts, The Phillips Collection, and Smithsonian Institution. He also lectures at colleges including the Corcoran College of Art + Design, SVA, Pratt, and MICA.
In 2008, his work and contributions to the field of graphic design were recognized with his selection as an AIGA Fellow. He has judged international competitions for the Society of Illustrators, American Illustration, AIGA, and Graphis. Alcalá also serves on the Smithsonian National Postal Museum and Poster House Museum’s advisory councils. His designs are represented in the AIGA Design Archives, the National Postal Museum, and the Library of Congress Permanent Collection of Graphic Design.
Alcalá graduated from Yale University with a BA in history and from the Yale School of Art with an MFA in graphic design. He lives with his wife in Alexandria, Virginia.