“‘I still find it fascinating to see how one line can make such a
difference!”
Inge Madlé, born in 1963 in
Amsterdam, has by now been busy as an engraver and graphic designer for
some 25 years, many of those spent in the employ of Joh. Enschedé Security
Print. Having finished her education as a silver and gold smith and engraver at
the Technical High School in Schoonhoven, Ms. Madlé continued to specialise
even further at the Utrecht School of Art, choosing graphic and typographic
design as her main subjects.
In 1985, Inge Madlé came into the employ of Enschedé, where she
spent the next two decades working on security print products such as bank
notes and of course stamps. Since 2005 Inge Madlé also works on an independent
basis, having many international organisations among her clientele. Combining
old techniques, such as engraving, with modern technologies to produce security
products is what makes her enjoy her work so much.
Inge Madlé’s inspiration when it comes to stamp engraving harks firmly
back to the realm of those beautiful old stamps from Austria and the many
engraved portraits on those. To her, the little masterpieces perfectly
translate matter into an engraving, and that is what for her makes a perfect
engraving. Time and again, when interviewed, Madlé stresses that what
fascinates her is to make matter look like matter. Skin should look like skin,
stone like stone, etc. This held
particularly true for the stamps she engraved for Great Britain.
Enschedé was awarded the contract to re-engrave and print the
Castles High Values, issued in July 1997. It was such an honour, Inge Madlé told
me, to be allowed to engrave the High Value definitives of Great Britain, being
a non-British engraver and printer. Although the same layout of the earlier
versions, engraved by C. Matthews, was maintained, the engravings are original
ones, based upon the original photographs by Prince Andrew, Duke of York. When comparing
the two sets closely, one can find lots of different details in both engravings.
Inge Madlé’s work has more links with the British Commonwealth.
Her first stamp product was the engraving of the 1990 miniature sheet for Stamp
World London ‘90, issued by the Isle of Man. A less obvious link is a 1995
stamp issued by the Netherlands. It marks the acquisition by the Dutch Postal
Museum of a Blue Mauritius. The Dutch stamp, printed in a combination of
lithography and intaglio, depicts the actual Mauritian stamp, which is the
engraved part of the design.
With so few countries still producing completely recess-printed
stamps, it is not remarkable that quite a few of Madlé’s stamps are a combination
of printing processes. She explains that the two types require a different
approach. A completely engraved stamp should consist of a varied pattern of
lines.
Carefully translating matter into an engraving is of the utmost
importance to prevent the engraving from becoming boring. Engraved stamps that
are printed in combination with lithography need a good balance between the two
processes. The lithographed colours should remain fresh and uncluttered, and
the engraved lines should carefully follow the lines dictated by the
lithography part of the design, so that the two complement each other
seamlessly. A very fine example of this is Madlé’s latest foray into stamp engraving,
the only recently issued Liechtenstein set depicting decorative eggs from the
realm of the tsars, also printed by Enschedé.
But whatever the printing process, or the matter to be engraved,
Inge Madlé sees her work on stamps as an important part of her design work.
“Each and every time it is a challenge to depict a whole scene in such a small
format!”
This article was first published in Stamp and Coin Mart of November 2011 and is reproduced with their kind permission.
STAMPS BY YEAR
1988
Ivory Coast, Archaeological research
1990
1993
Netherlands, Notaries Association
1995
United Nations Geneva, 50th anniversary
United Nations New York, 50th anniversary
United Nations Vienna, 50th anniversary
1996
Finland, Stamp Day
1997
1998
Finland, postal co-operation, ships
1999
2001
Great Britain, Nobel Prizes 1st class
2011
Liechtenstein, Decorative eggs
2014
Liechtenstein, Prince Hans Adam's silver jubilee
Liechtenstein, Chinese porcelain
2015
Liechtenstein, Prince Hans Adam II's birthday
OTHER ITEMS
1990
WEBSITE
Madlé Design