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Artistamps are art and refer to non-postage stamps or private printed stamps as opposed to the regular government publications designed for use in the official postal systems of the world. "Postage stamps by philatelic definition are tiny, codified, functional objects with edition sizes, denominations, adhesives, perforations, cancellations, inks, colors, papers, watermarks, and printed images. These philatelic definitives, revenues, and commemorative stamp issues are authorized by government, not artists. While some aspects of the philatelic definition apply to stamps issued by artists, it is the realm of imagination that governs the orthodox, ephemeral aesthetic of artistamps created mail artists" (from Chuck Welch, Eternal Network). The mail art phenomenon, of which artistamps are a part, appears to have begun as early as the 1940's, though some believe it dates back even further. Carl Schwesig's illustrated 'Gurs' issues, depicting life in a German concentration camp, are considered to be the first 'real' artistamps.

Canadian multi media artist Michael Bidner was also a philatelist and mail artists who pioneered the artistamp (a term he coined to replace the awkward usage of artist's stamps and artists' stamps). His ten-year mission to collect and catalogue artistamps of the world found its greatest expression in the development of his Standard Artistamp catalogue. According to American mail artists Alexander Cheek, Bidner's Catalogue was "intended to bring mail artists and stamp collectors closer together by recognizing artistamps as philatelic items, worthy of serious study. After his death in 1989 Bidner's artistamp and mail art collection was bequeathed in its entirety to Artpool, an archive in Budapest, Hungary. Although Michael Bidner was an important innovator in the development of artistamps there are few published references to his many contributions to this new art genre. The World of Artistamps seeks to begin to fill this gap.

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