Howard Koslow –Stamp Artist

By Ray Smock

The Washington Post contained a fascinating obituary in its Feb. 3, 2016 edition, that of Howard Koslow a distinguished illustrator, painter and postage stamp artist who died at age 91. I had the pleasure of working with Mr. Koslow on commemorative postage stamps in honor of the bicentennial of the U. S. Congress in the late 1980s. He designed more than 60 stamps, including a very popular series on American lighthouses.

Ray Smock poses with large posters of the House and Senate commemorative stamps that were used in a joint session of Congress on March 2, 1989. The artist Howard Koslow signed the House poster at the end of the ceremony. The posters are part of the Robert C. Byrd Archives.

I had been a stamp collector from an early age and the chance to work with the U.S. Postal Service and such a marvelous artist as Howard Koslow on a stamp design was a dream-come- true. I was the Historian of the House of Representatives at the time, and, in conjunction with the Senate Curator and the Senate Historical Office, we planned for two stamps, one for the House and the other for the Senate.  The Capitol Dome has been used on numerous stamp designs over the years, representing Congress as a whole and being a classic symbol of representative democracy. We wanted to remind the public that Congress is composed of two distinct, co-equal bodies, each with its own rules and with certain responsibilities under the Constitution. 

​I had no trouble selecting the one object that I thought best represented the House of Representatives, although I had no idea how it would be rendered on a miniature postage stamp.  A marvelous sculpture, the Car of History, resides in the old House chamber, now Statuary Hall. It was placed there in 1819. It shows Clio, the Muse of History, riding in a chariot above the Earth, writing in a big ledger book the events of history below her.  In addition to being the oldest sculpture in the House, it symbolizes the fact that history is made in the House and Senate and that the congressmen and women are ultimately responsible for their deeds there.

​The Senate decided to select the American eagle carving that resides in the Old Senate Chamber, one of the most elegant renderings of the national symbol to be found anywhere.

The Car of History, a marble sculpture by Carlo Franzoni, was placed in the old House Chamber, now called Statuary Hall, in 1819. The clockworks, by Simon Willard, were installed in 1837. The gears are hand-carved wood. It still keeps time.

The origins of the Senate’s beautiful Eagle and Shield are not well known, although it has probably been in the old Senate Chamber since 1838. It is made of wood that has been gilded.

​It was up to Mr. Koslow to conceive these works of art in a way that would make them look good even on a tiny postage stamp, and his artistry pleased us all immensely.  The Postmaster General, Anthony M. Frank, unveiled these stamps in a special joint session commemorating the 200th anniversary of Congress on March 2, 1989. We also had posters printed with the stamp design that was distributed to members of the House and used for other ceremonial purposes including the first day of issue on April 4, 1989.

The House commemorative stamp postmarked on its first day of issue on April 4, 1989.

​After the unveiling of these stamps using the large poster of each, I asked Mr. Koslow if he would sign the poster for me.  He was happy to do so and the poster has been preserved as one of our many artifacts at the Byrd Center, where each item and each document in our collection has a story behind it.