On March 28, 2022, Post Aruba N.V. emits a stamp series named ‘Orchids’. This stamp emission was designed by Mrs. Natasha de la Fuente, and it consists of 4 stamps and is accompanied by a First Day Cover envelope.
Artist Biography
Natascha de la Fuente was born in Surinam, but grew up in Curacao and since 1978 she has been living in Aruba. Natascha, has always loved to draw, paint and be creative. She observes forms and colors of different objects. In 2010 she took some basic drawing lessons, but she is pretty much self-taught.
She loves painting flora and fauna, but she also loves to paint landscapes, still life and portraits. She paints mostly with Acrylic on canvas, but she also paints with watercolors and recently she started painting with oils. She truly enjoys painting and when she sees it evolving, take shape and watches it come alive, it still amazes her.
In 2018 she got her National Artisan Seal of Certification from the Department of Culture in Aruba and immediately started selling her art at Cosecha Aruba.
She has participated in various art events like Aruba Art Fair and Aruba Sea Jazz Festival.
In 2020 she got selected by Unoca Aruba with a presentation of an online exhibit of 17 paintings that she made.
Currently she sells her art at weekly events at three hotels. You can follow her for regular updates on her Facebook page Nati’s Painting Passion (https://www.facebook.com/Nati7778) or her website https://www.natispaintingpassion.com all other links (like Instagram and TikTok) are on her linktree https://linktr.ee/Natispaintingpassion.
For more information or commisions you can email her at natispaintingpassion@gmail.com or on the “contact me” link on her website!
Orchids:
Spathoglottis (Big red fancy)
Spathoglottis orchids usually grow in moist places in forest, grassland and swamps, usually in bright sunshine. They are easy to cultivate and sought after for their colorful flowers. They need sun for part of the day, well drained loamy soil and regular water. Not surprisingly, ground orchids are found growing in soil. Species of Spathoglottis are found from eastern and south-eastern Asia to Australia and some Pacific Islands. The flowering stem emerges from a pseudobulb and bears medium-sized, colorful flowers from purple, white, yellow and pink. The name Spathoglottis is derived from the Greek Spathe, spathe and glotta, tongue a probable reference to the broad labellum midlobe. (my own picture reference taken from the private orchid collection from Mrs. Sita Gobardhan)
Cattleya Habenaria Rhodocheila
This beautiful species comes from Southeast Asia. There are several color forms, the most commonly seen are yellow, red orange and pink. Rhodocheila grows in an area that experiences definite wet and dry seasons.
During the wet season the plant sprouts new shoots and grows rapidly so that it can flower and produce seed before the dry season sets in. When the weather starts to dry out the leaves and stem start to die back and by late fall or early winter all trace of the plant above ground is gone. In late March you can start watching for signs of new growth. (picture reference Mrs. Judith Ho of her own private orchid collection)
Vanda Tessellata Blue
Vanda Tessellata is an orchid species found in e.g. the Eastern Himalayas, Nepal at elevations around 1500 meters. Medium to large size with a climbing stem carrying linear, narrow, leaves that bloom on a long inflorescence carrying 5 to 12 fragrant, long-lived flowers occurring in the summer, fall and early winter.
They have aerial roots and long, sturdy and upright stems. The leaves of these orchids vary depending on the habitat. Some species, categorized as strap-leaved Vanda orchids, have strap-like leaves that are leathery and thick. Common names are checkered Vanda, lattice- like patterned flower vanda, which is a medium- to large-sized orchid species that originated in India and recognized for its medicinal value. The fragrant and long-lasting flowers have yellow petals with brown and white markings, yellow tesselated sepals and bluish-purple lip. (my own picture reference taken from the private orchid collection taken from Mrs. Sita Gobardhan)
Dendrobium Nobile (light pink)
Dendrobium Nobile, commonly known as the Noble dendrobium, is a member of the family Orchidaceae. It has become a popular cultivated decorative house plant, because it produces colorful blooms in winter and spring, at a time when little else is in flower. It is also one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine. It is one of the most widespread ornamental members of the orchid family and blooms are variegated in color, shading from white through pink and purple. It grows in lowland and mountain forests, often on mossy limestone rocks.
It differs from other members of the orchid family by the cluster of flowers – called – raceme – that appears at its leaf axils. This orchid tolerates much light, but no direct sunlight. (my own picture reference taken from my own private orchid collection)
This stamp series and First Day Cover envelope are available at all the Post Office locations, namely in Oranjestad and San Nicolas, and also our online stamp shop on www.postaruba.com/stampshop
For more information on the “Orchids” stamps serie please visit the Facebook page: Aruba Stamps or Webpage: postaruba.com/philatelic/
