About This Stamp
In 1992, the Postal Service issued a colorful booklet of Wild Animals commemorative stamps, featuring five of nature's most beloved creatures: the giraffe, giant panda, king penguin, flamingo, and white Bengal tiger.
The giraffe is the tallest of all living land animals. Adult males weigh as much as 3,000 pounds and stand as high as eighteen feet. The name "Giraffa" comes from the Arabic word "zurafa," which means "one who walks swiftly or creature of grace."
Although the giant panda is often referred to as the panda bear, it is more closely related to the raccoon than to bears. Giant pandas are found mainly in the mountainous forests of southwestern China, where they feed largely on bamboo.
King penguins are second largest of the 17 species of the penguin family. They are flightless birds, but it is believed they evolved from ancestors that could fly.
Its long, distinctive neck helps make the flamingo the most recognized bird in the world. Six different kinds of flamingos exist today and can be found in the Caribbean region, from southern Florida to northern South America, Africa, and Asia.
The white Bengal tiger is one of more than a half dozen distinct races of tiger, each distinguished by the color pattern of its coat. Most can be found in forests of eastern India and Bangladesh.
The stamps were designed by Robert Giusti and printed in the photogravure process by Stamp Venturers, Inc.
Stamp Art Director
Derry Noyes
For more than 40 years Derry Noyes has designed and provided art direction for close to 800 United States postage stamps and stamp products. She holds a bachelor of arts degree from Hampshire College and a master of fine arts degree from Yale University.
Noyes worked as a graphics designer at Beveridge and Associates, a Washington, D.C., firm, until 1979 when she established her own design firm, Derry Noyes Graphics. Her clients have included museums, corporations, foundations, and architectural and educational institutions. Her work has been honored by American Illustration, the Art Directors Club of Metropolitan Washington, Communication Arts, Critique magazine, Graphis, Creativity International, and the Society of Illustrators.
Before becoming an art director for the U.S. Postal Service, she served as a member of the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee from 1981 to 1983.
Noyes is a resident of Washington, D.C.
Stamp Artist
Robert Giusti
Born in Switzerland and raised in New York City, Robert Giusti studied painting, sculpture, and graphics at the Tyler School of Fine Arts in Philadelphia and Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan. The son of a graphic designer, Giusti grew up in an environment where expression of creativity was highly encouraged — the perfect atmosphere for a budding artist.
Giusti returned to New York after finishing school, finding success in the art world there. He began to work in advertising and publishing before setting out as a freelance illustrator and designer, gaining acclaim for his unique style. Some of the clients he has worked with throughout his career include United Airlines, Columbia Records, The New York Times, ExxonMobil, NBC, and TIME.
Since childhood, Giusti has had a fascination with animals, enamored with their simple, honest beauty that lends itself to imaginative recreations. His portfolio of stamps created for the U.S. Postal Service features an array of colorful wildlife. His love for abstract paintings and concepts has remained steadfast through the years.
Currently, Giusti is illustrating covers for Der Spiegel magazine, as well as their children's publications. His work has been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world, winning him silver and gold medals from the Society of Illustrators, among many others.
Giusti lives in Bridgewater, Connecticut, with his wife, Grace, and their two dogs, Lupo and Baci. Songbirds in Snow (2016), Songbirds (2014), and Tufted Puffins (2013) are his most recent projects for the Postal Service. Other designs by Giusti include Cardinal (1991), Wild Animals (1992), Tropical Birds (1998), and Red Fox (1999).