Fascism Is Blooming In America, or FIBIA for short, was a project started in January of 2025. It contained firstly the creation of 50 designed postage stamps to represent the 50 states. Afterwards these stamps would be showcased on a poster and booklet also designed by me.
My initial concepts for the project was to include each state’s flower on the stamps, but with the inauguration of Donald Trump looming over us all, the project evolved.
Researching the states and their flowers revealed not only the beautiful symbolism behind the flowers, but also the bloody, racist history of how each state was acquired and cultivated. I couldn’t ignore this dichotomy. It didn’t feel right to celebrate our country during a politically charged time. So while the stamps themselves are deceptively bright, the poster and booklet show you the thorny underside.
Project beginnings
We all have to start somewhere, and for me that was a poorly made mood board and color pencil sketches of each stamp.
My original aesthetic was a mixture of rustic, Americana, and brightly colored tourism advertisements from the 40’s through the 60’s.
Stamps
