Martin Cinovsky was born in 1953,
in Czechoslovakian Levoča, which is now in Slovakia. From a young age, his
schooling was aimed at the arts and from 1971 to 1977 he studied at the Academy
of Fine Arts in Bratislava, where the famous stamp designer Professor Albin
Brunovsky was his mentor.
Further education followed in
France, where he studied at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs
in Paris from 1979 to 1984. While there, he specialised in graphic
art for postage stamps. During this time, Cinovsky also obtained an internship
at France’s state printers.
Although starting out as a
freelance artist and later as a professor himself at the Academy of Fine Arts
in Bratislava, it is no surprise to see that Cinovsky soon ended up designing
and engraving stamps for Czechoslovakia. His first stamp dates from 1986,
marking the Women’s World Volleyball Championship in Prague. The following
years, Cinovsky was able to engrave a good number of stamps and first day cover
illustrations, but it was not until the break-up of Czechoslovakia that his
career really took off.
Cinovsky was given the honour to
design and engrave the first stamps of the newly founded Slovak Republic. Two
values depicting the State Arms were issued in January 1993. This was soon
followed by a definitive design portraying President Kovac. In the two
subsequent decades Cinovsky has worked on over 150 stamps, making him one of
the most important engravers in Slovakia. His work has topped public polls in
quite a few years, right from the very beginning in 1993. And recognition from
more official quarters, such as the Ministry of Transport, Posts and
Telecommunications, is also a regular feature on Cinovsky’s CV.
Abroad his work
is recognised as well. In 2004, France awarded him the French Order of the
Knight of Art and Letters, and in 2011 his monumental engraving of the
miniature sheet issued to mark the 400th anniversary of the Zilina Synod, was
chosen as the most beautifully engraved stamp in the European Union. A year
later, that same stamp came third in the prestigious ‘Grand Prix de
l’Exposition’ in Vienna, which decides on the most beautiful stamp in the
world.
Cinosvky commented at the time that
when he first saw the design for this miniature sheet, he was really worried
because he had never engraved something that detailed. The engraving took him
several months, sometimes having to squeeze six to eight lines in a square
millimetre.
As it happens,
Cinovsky was born in the same year the Czechoslovak Philatelic Society of Great
Britain was founded. Both celebrated their fiftieth anniversary here in Britain
at Stampex, which also happened to celebrate its fiftieth year. The CPSGB was
the featured society at the exhibition and Cinovsky designed and engraved a
special miniature sheet. The design incorporated the stamp he created for his
one-time master Brunovsky, and his famous personal postmark, which always
includes his age and his cardiograph.
Like Czechoslovakia in the past,
Slovakia has maintained a great tradition of using engraved artwork on their
official first day covers as well. This artwork would form a great sideline to
a stamp engravers collection, with engravers being able to showcase their
talent, whilst working on a larger format. For Cinovsky, it meant he could
honour his master Brunovsky once again, by portraying him at work on the 1999
Stamp Day issue paying homage to the late artist and stamp designer.
You will find Martin Cinovsky's database HERE.