Description:
Since their appearance in 1896, pinback buttons have expressed viewpoints, made statements and shown off the interests of those who wear them. A novel medium, these buttons quickly came into popular use as advertising tools and for political campaigns. For more than 120 years, pinback buttons of various sizes have helped spread ideas and broadcast opinions on a wide variety of topics.
The designs and slogans adorning buttons reflect the era and values of the time in which they were created, like any other piece of pop culture ephemera. In this way, pinback buttons become historical tools providing insight into the moods, sentiments and worldviews of people living in a particular time and place.
Pinback Buttons is a pane of 20 stamps featuring 10 typographic designs by various artists in their own signature style. Each design imparts a single upbeat message: smile (Don Clark), hello! (Tré Seals), peace (Jay Fletcher), love (Juan Carlos Pagan), fun (Gia Graham), sweet (Jeff Rogers), yes! (Ryan Feerer), cheers! (Lisa Congdon), kudos! (DKNG Studios) and happy (Gina Triplett). The round shape of the stamps, and the shadowing and reflection effects used, give the appearance of three-dimensional pinback buttons. The pane verso features an illustration of a round silver button back with pin fastener repeated 20 times, one for each pinback button shown on the front of the pane. Greg Breeding, an art director for USPS, designed the stamps.