Martin Mörck – Tireless Champion of the Engraver’s Art

If the term “Scandinavia” hadn’t already existed, it would have had to be invented for Martin Mörck. A Norwegian of Swedish birth, and living in Denmark – how could he be characterized as anything but Scandinavian? He also spends time, each year, in Greenland and China.

China?

Yes. As in, “People’s Republic of . . .”

In a world in which autograph correspondence is all but dead, and postal administrations are struggling to maintain fiscal balance in the face of declining demand, China is bucking one unfortunate trend – the scaling back, and even elimination of the engraved postage stamp. The exquisite skill and artistry required, along with the hundreds of hours of labor involved in the process (2 to 4 weeks to create one engraving), makes the production of engraved stamps more expensive, by far, than modern automated processes for offset printing. And, so, fewer and fewer engraved stamps are produced each year.

In 1998, Mörck engraved this $2 polar bear issue, Scott #1690, for Canada’s definitive series of 1997-2005.

The United States Postal Service has likely engraved its last stamp, banking on colorful cartoon stickers for kids, to stave off foreclosure of the ranch. And worldwide, it has been estimated by the Paris-based Art du Timbre Gravé, only 10 to 15% of stamps produced these days are hand-engraved.

Two issues, Scott 2943 and 2934, engraved by Morck, for the Great Americans series issued by the United States Postal Service.

China, on the other hand, has determined that there is a need and a demand for hand-engraved stamps. However, as is the case elsewhere in the world, there is a dearth of artists skilled in the exacting and painstaking art of steel-plate line-engraving. And this is where Martin Mörck comes in.

China Post has retained the master engraver to train 10 young students in the art of engraving. With virtually all of the current working stamp engravers (by Mörck’s count, only a dozen or so, concentrated in four countries) being in their 50s and older, this group will form the vanguard of a new generation of stamp-engraving artists, charged with the task of keeping this increasingly rare art form alive.

Issued by China in December 2011, this set depicts historical astronomical instruments.

In choosing Martin Mörck to spearhead this training program, China Post could not have found a better champion. With well over 650 engraved stamp designs to his credit, over a 40 year period, Martin Mörck is rivaled, probably, only by the legendary Czesław Słania in his philatelic output. His work can be seen on the stamps of no less than 18 postal administrations, including the usual suspects (i.e. the Scandinavians), France, Austria, Latvia, Canada, and even the great underachiever of philatelic excellence, the United States Postal Service.

Befitting his role in China, Mörck has also engraved two of that country’s recent stamp issues, the Astronomical Instruments (joint issue with Denmark), and the Classical Music Composers.

An unusual issue from China, depicting western classical music composers — Bach, Haydn, Beethoven, and Mozart.

A high school dropout at the age of 16, Martin Mörck enrolled in art school, and, dissatisfied with the level of teaching there, dropped out again after 2 years. With an interest in engraving, and realizing that the only artists knowledgeable in that art were those who were producing postage stamps, he wrote a letter to the Swedish Post looking for a trainee position. He was accepted, and by the age of 20 he had become a freelance engraving artist. With a passion for the ocean, seascapes and sailing ships are particular favorite subjects of his.

One of Martin Mörck’s personal favorites, the “East Indiaman” engraved for Sweden, in 2003.

A joint-issue between France and Greenland, produced in 2007.

40 years, and almost 670 stamps later, Martin Mörck shows no signs of slowing down. His enthusiasm for life, and the joy he feels in his work, ensure that we can look forward to many more beautiful stamp designs from him. And with the foresight of China Post, we are assured of seeing his continued influence in the philatelic art of other countries.