About This Stamp
The U.S. Postal Service continues its long tradition of honoring the flag of the United States with a new stamp available in booklets of 20, panes of 20, and coils of 100, 3,000, and 10,000.
The stamp features an image of the Stars and Stripes, fluttered by a breeze, against a bright white background. Beneath the flag, “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” has been rendered in blue type above a horizontal red line. “FOREVER / USA” appears along the bottom of the stamp in gray lettering.
The current American flag consists of 13 alternating horizontal stripes — seven red and six white—and 50 stars on a field of blue. The flag's 13 stripes represent the 13 colonies that declared independence from Great Britain, while the number of stars on the flag matches the number of states in the Union. The flag's 50th star was added on July 4, 1960, after Hawai‘i became a state in 1959.
An enduring emblem of freedom, national unity, and patriotic spirit, Old Glory waves proudly outside government offices, schools, military bases, and USPS facilities. Flags stand watch over the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., and encircle the base of the Washington Monument. Flag Day, first proclaimed by President Woodrow Wilson in 1916, is observed every year on June 14.
Art director Antonio Alcalá designed the stamp using a photograph by Doug Haight.
The U.S. Flag stamp is being issued as a Forever® stamp. This Forever stamp will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail® one-ounce price.
Stamp Designer, Stamp Art Director
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.
Existing Photo
Doug Haight
From captivating photography to engaging video portraits, Doug Haight is passionate about creating compelling images that tell powerful stories for a wide variety of audiences. His award-winning work has been praised by clients and critics alike for its distinctive visual style and organic storytelling. “I’m interested in the human experience,” he says. “On a good day, my work tells stories of vitality, emotion, and beauty through images that people can relate to and return to.”
For more than 20 years, Haight has traveled on assignment to every region of the United States and around the world, from Cuba, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic to France, Italy, and Japan. “Photography is usually a reason for me to be places I would not be otherwise,” he explains, “and while I’m there I am fortunate to meet people, relate to their lives, and see how they interact with the patterns and rhythms of their circumstances.”
Although much of his work is street photography, Haight has been increasingly working in environmental portraiture, as well as editorial and documentary photography. His images have been featured in numerous festivals, shows, and publications, including the New York Times, and purchased for numerous private collections.
Based in Evanston, Illinois, Haight is the owner of Fortune Fish Films, which specializes in photography and video production. He is also the president of Perspective Group and Photography Gallery Limited, a nonprofit, community-oriented cooperative whose purpose is to promote fine-art photography.
Haight's photograph appears on the U.S. Flag (2025) stamp issuance.