He has traveled more than 100,000 miles collecting postmarks, stamps and signatures for his artworks. The number of postmarks I get add to the value of the prints. It also increases their value when towns become disestablished and post offices close. There are no second editions of a print and the original will never be duplicated, Turmel says. I met someone who had flown in from Germany to Los Angeles for a postmark,'' he says.
Collectors usually get only one or two postmarks on a postcard.
If you want to see their collection you have to look at all their cards. Turmel says more than 1,000 postmasters, museums and professional artists have confirmed his work as original. I have to take the original artwork to each post office personally,'' he says. Postmarking devices are used only for 30 days, then sent to Kansas City and destroyed after 90 days. This makes the artwork historical as well as beautiful, he says.