Good news, everyone! We have an official postcard for the World Postcard Day 2021, and it’s beautiful! 😍
We received 173 submissions in the contest in the past couple of months, and so it was a really difficult task to pick just three winners among all the designs. Together with Finepaper and Curator Georgina Tomlinson from London’s Postal Museum, we’ve ooh’d and aah’d at all the little details, the colors and different ways that our artists (some of them quite young!) chose to interpret this year’s theme “Across the world on a postcard”. Magic carpet postcard rides, postcards as tickets for a worldwide trip, parents showing children the world through postcards, cute animals writing their cards… there was a bit of everything!
In the end, the juries were enthralled by this design from Taiwanese postcrosser and artist Shao-hua Wu (aka shao_huaaa):
She did a brilliant job of illustrating this year’s theme, and we’ll be delighted to see this gorgeous design making its way to many mailboxes on October 1st! Congratulations Shao-hua! About the design, she wrote:
“Postcard with the exotic scenery delivered to every postcrosser.
Made our mind travel to different places on postcards.
Bring the local daily and special memory to people’s normal day.”
Isn’t that sweet? Our minds do travel to different places when we send or receive postcards, as they are indeed little pieces of special memories brought into our days. 😊 You can see many more of Shao-hua’s illustrations on her Instagram page, and we invite you to also come check out the 2nd and 3rd place winners on the contest page.
If you’d like to print this postcard on your local printing shop or through an online service (like Vistaprint), the files are available for download on the World Postcard Day page. If you use it or receive it, we encourage you to share it online with the hashtag #WorldPostcardDay! We’d love to see how far and wide this postcard travels, and especially look forward to seeing pictures of it next to different mailboxes!
And with just a month and a half to go, it’s time to get our ducks in a row and start preparing for the World Postcard Day in earnest! A few events are already on the calendar, but we look forward to many more popping up in the next few weeks.
Not sure how you can celebrate the day? Check out this page for some tips – for instance, you can bring postcards to a classroom to help little ones learn from them and send some, or help your local library or museum do something special to mark the day. Share your plans with us in the comments below, or on this forum topic, so we can spread the word and cheer you on!
And naturally, the World Postcard Day badge will be awarded once more to those who send at least one postcard in Postcrossing on October 1st (during UTC time). Make sure to save some slots until then, so you can request a few postcards on the day!
PS: Hi everyone! I’m adding a little postscript to this post to make a few things clear.
As Paulo mentioned somewhere in the comments below, the World Postcard Day postcard was chosen by a multi-disciplinary jury based on the artistic interpretation of this year’s theme. We think it’s a lovely postcard which perfectly embodies the spirit of “Across the world on a postcard”.
Design competitions are based on artistic merit of the submitted work — not on the artist’s personal life or their views. Postcrossing and the World Postcard Day do not endorse anyone’s political views with this design, and we do not award or disqualify designs based on them.
We have listened to all arguments presented and understand that this is an important topic to some of our members, but we do not see a valid reason to disqualify this postcard. In the end, the World Postcard Day is a celebration of postcards and the joy that they bring — whether one prints the official postcard or chooses to commemorate with any other postcard, it’s all good!
Postcrossing aims to be a respectful and friendly community, and many of the comments in this blog post were not in that spirit. Because this discussion no longer feels productive, I’m afraid we are closing the comments here. As always, the team can be reached directly via the Contact Form.
178 comments so far
Looking forward to World Post Day 2021
What a lovely postcard! I love it!
So pretty! Thank you for this postcard. š
Delicate and graceful.
Great design!
I also love the second and third place postcards.
Congratulations Shao-hua. I love it š
How difficult it must have been to make the choice.
I love the winner but I also love the runner's up as well.
Well done to all who entered.
What a beautiful card ā”
What an adorable design ! It makes me start to imagine and trace where the postcard has been visited and what it bring to us ! The 2nd and 3rd designs are so beautiful as well ! Big thanks for all the wonderful postcards and Congratulations !
I am looking forward to use It!
What a beautiful design and so fills the senses with the wonders of connecting via Postcrossings.
Beautiful design, I love it! š„°
Yay! Congratulations to the winners - such cute designs : )
Adorable :)
Really lovely design! Is there any possibility to print 2nd and 3rd place too?
Such a beautiful postcard!
@AntiFlag93 I'm afraid not. :( There's only one official postcard for the World Postcard Day, which is the one we've released with a Creative Commons license.
Congratulations to the winners š„°
what a beautiful postcard!I love it!!š
It is a great card. I just don't understand how to get it printed. Some help please.
@Jamesmoore86 You can download the files (front and back sides) on this page: https://worldpostcardday.com/celebrate#postcard
Then, take these to a local printing shop, or upload them to a service like https://vistaprint.com or https://moo.com and follow the steps. They'll print your postcards and mail them to you. :)
Elegant! <3
Beautiful design! I envy all you talented artists!
Wonderful postcard! Congratulations Shao-hua Wu!
I would like to send such a postcard and receive a model from each country with the occasion of World Postcard Day 2021 official postcard.
To find the current UTC time:
https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/timezone/utc
I'll definitively will get some printed postcards with this motive. :-) But I also would like to print the second and third prize as postcard too.
Beautiful card with a lovely context for World Postcard Day.
Please don't send me this postcard.
Please don't send me this postcard
@everyone: We have been following the comments and we'd like the share the following.
First, the design was chosen based on its quality in representing this year's theme for the postcard design contest: "Across the world on a postcard". It was selected with the votes of 3 different juries (of which Postcrossing is only one part) who have chosen this as the best one and we are very happy with it being the image of this year's World Postcard Day. We think it does an excellent job in depicting how a postcard can connect different people across the world, which is the goal.
Second, this was a design competition. And as such, the submissions of the contest were judged based on the quality of the design submitted to us and not on the artists' personal views āĀ the same way an athlete on the Olympics Games is evaluated for their performance on the games, and not on their personal life outside of the competition.
While we respect everyone's opinion and know that some topics are very important to some, this is not the right place for a political discussion that is bound to be complex and nuanced, well beyond the scope of Postcrossing. Hence, any comments which are off-topic (such as criticising the artist's personal views or focusing on political disputes) and/or that are not respectful of others will be removed.
Lastly, the World Postcard Day is about celebrating the importance of postcards and the joy that they bring around the world. Whether that is done with this particular design or any other postcard is fine āĀ we are all celebrating postcards and ultimately that's what matters.
Please don't send me this postcard.
Hello all Postcrossers, what a wonderful design! Let's postcard the world on our day. Keep 'crossing!;š„³
I love the postcard and it totally represents the idea of postcrossing - seeing the world thru postcards and connecting with with people; sharing a little piece of their world or your preferences if possible! It's about seeing/learning a little something. I think it really represents a postcard!
@JessicaSnailMail This year only postmarks... but there might be something in stock for next year! š
LOVE this postcard! So ready to send it!
Hello every one, I love the design of the card. I love to get it.
-Happy Post crossing to all-
Better learning the lesson of today's incident; better avoiding any controversy over any upcoming OFFICIAL release.
Please don't send me this postcard.
I ordered the card at a printing service and look forward to let the cards travel the world. šš¼
It was supposed to be a happy day, but I'm not happy. I'm sorry, I feel very disappointed.
Love this design so so much! Congratulations Shaohua, good job! As a Taiwanese, I am proud to be able to see the landmark of Taiwan (Taipei 101) on World Postcard Day 2021. Can't wait to print/receive this postcard soon!
Very Love this card, it show special 2 color TW's mailbox and Taipei 101 on card, so I will print some to send. ^^ In Postcrossing, we care the card's design and their meaning, not the artists' personal views. :)
Plz do NOT send me the official 2021 world postcard day card to me!
I do not like this official 2021 world postcardļ¼and I insist to refuse this postcard.I thought postcrossing was a place where everyone have their liberty to express their specific opinion about the illustrator of this postcard.Though,you have delete what I said several hours ago.Furthermoreļ¼the members of China on postcrossing will be very disappointed about what the official did to us.
I suggest that you official should pay more attention to this issue.
Wow!!!! I love this postcard so much!!
BTW, I really agree that we should pay more attention to the card own, not the artistās personal views. It is actually a different thing.
Whatever, happy postcrossing and enjoy The World Postcard day. Best wishes to all.
What a Beautiful Postcard to share with All Our Worldly Postcrossing Buddies!
We all Love deltiology!
Congrats! It was nice to be part of the competition :D
The design is beautiful and perfectly captures the sentiment of WPD. I'm looking forward to getting them printed and using them to send to friends & postcrossers. Thank you for your work on the contest and for sharing the 2nd and 3rd place designs.
I found the second and third prizes also beautiful. It it possible to release the designs so that we have more motives to send? :)
I love it! Can't wait for Oct 1st! :)
Please don't send me this postcard.
Please do not send me this postcard!
please don't send me this post card!!!!!!!!!!!
Please do not send me this postcard!
Please don't send me this postcard !
don't send me this post card!!
Why delete my comment ?!
This is not a place to discuss political topics, nor are postcards. I don't understand why the administrator secretly deleted my comments by jet lag in the early morning of Beijing time? I don't want to receive such a card this year.
If you don't want others to discuss, then you better avoid any controversy. Think about last year's WPD. You did a great job in celebrating it.
Also, what kind of "respect everyone's opinion" are you talking about while removing comments selectively?
Do learn a lesson this time. I'm very disappointed.
Please DO NOT send me this postcard !!!!!
Please don't send me this postcard! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So the final decision is the card is still on and our comments are deleted? Itās so ridiculous that Postcrossing as a platform which always said that no political arguments here but also said it is just a postcard. The creator uses her painting as the platform to show her opinion, in this case it is not just a postcard.. Iām sorry that my comment was deleted, I donāt know when postcrossing is becoming a platform when ppl can not show their own comments freely and the comments will be deleted only because we talked too much and it just a postcard.
We love postcard which give us lots of fun.
Obviously, WE ARE VERY DISAPPOINITED NOW!
I think that the 2nd /3Rd prize postcards are better,
Pls relese them for more choice to print,if possible.
Thanks
Please DO NOT send me this postcard !!!!!
I only have one question, why did the creator choose several symbols on the picture? Could you please let she explain her creative idea.
Please don't send me this postcard.
I don't think this painting is a good expression of the theme of this event. It does not reflect the countries with the most registered and active users on the site, such as Germany and Russia, but rather expresses its own selfish purpose.
the World Postcard Day is about celebrating the importance of postcards and the joy that they bring around the world.But this years card cannot bring happiness to the world.(maybe not to the world,but it didn't give me a celebratory message.Too pity.
Now,my comments do not say anything political and it just represent my personal views. If you choose to delete themļ¼it will be
really disappointing.
if my comment be deleted,it will show postcrossing maybe is not a website of the freedom and equality advocated by western countries.
Please don't send me this postcardļ¼ļ¼
Please don't send me this postcardļ¼
Plz do NOT send me the official 2021 world postcard day card to me!
Please don't send me this postcard.
Please donāt send me the official 2021 World Postcard Day card to me !
I can't believe that these words was said by the organizer! This is World Postcard Day! But! In your mind! The world except CHINA!
You can delete all Chinese comment, But you can't blur our mind.
Please do not send me this postcard!
Plz do NOT send me the official 2021 world postcard day card to me!
PLZ DO NOT SEND THIS POSTCARD TO ME!!!!!!
Please don't send me this postcardļ¼
čÆ·äøč¦ęčæå¼ ęäæ”ēåÆē»ęļ¼
Please don't send me this postcard.
Plz do NOT send me the official 2021 world postcard day card to me!ļ¼ļ¼ļ¼
Plz do NOT send me the official 2021 world postcard day card to me!
Plz do NOT send me the official 2021 world postcard day card to me!
Plz do NOT send me the official 2021 world postcard day card to me!
PC is not a place to express political positions
Congratulations to all of the artists -- I admire the simplicity of your cards in expressing this year's WORLD POSTCARD DAY theme and especially appreciated you all taking the time, and making an effort, to enter the contest. (As the years pass, I, myself seem to become lazier) However, I look forward to receiving this year's commemorative postcard.
I notice that first-place contest winner, Shao-hua Wu, is a POSTCROSSING Supporter. I am also pleased to share such a badge...somehow I missed sending a postcard on October 1, last year, but have already marked my calendar for WPD 2021.
Perhaps next year, more people (including me) will contribute their unique ideas for WORLD POSTCARD DAY. Let's all continue to enjoy POSTCROSSING.
Nice design! I hope someone will send it to me later this year :-)
please don't send me this postcard.
PC is not a place to express political positionsļ¼ļ¼ļ¼ļ¼ļ¼ļ¼
Amazing design! Looking forward receiving this card :D
I'm looking forward to send and receive this postcard! <3
Please do not send me this postcard!
Can't wait for WPD 2021
So cute design that I might order a batch of these to send out on World Postcard Day! š
I love this postcard!!!
Please don't sent me this postcard ! ! !
Postcrossing is not a place to express political positions ! ! !
Please don't sent me this postcard!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wonderful! I would like to write many postcards this year.
If this kind of thing can be considered as 'art', who can't be a Leonardo da Vinci?
Please don't sent me this postcard!
Please don't sent me this postcard!
congratulations to all of us
What a ridiculous postcard to show the theme of World Postcard Dayļ¼
What a shame that you official choose this postcard to celebrate our World Postcard Dayļ¼
lovellllllllllllllllly
Concisely and warmly convey the essence of the postcard. I like this work and look forward to sending it to other PCers.
Please don't sent me this postcard!ļ¼ļ¼
This postcard is really beautiful!
ć3 questionsćI have noticed that many users in mainland China are opposed to the postcards for this World Postcard Day.
Here I would like to ask the selection team 3 questions:
1. What are the rules for selecting postcards for World Postcard Day? Was it elected on the basis of fairness, democracy, and fairness, or was it the meaning of a few people? Can the content of the selection or discussion be made public?
2. Congratulations to this winner, but in the postcard she designed, there is an obvious error in the posture of writing with a pen, which may bring wrong and negative effects to the children who are learning to write.
3.This is an open platform, personal political opinions should Not be considered as a factor influencing the design, but will the selection team choose the work of an author who has committed genocide, war of aggression, or participated in riots?
Please don't send me this postcard.
Please don't sent me this postcard!ļ¼ļ¼
Plz do NOT send me the official 2021 world postcard day card to me!
so beautiful!!!!!
Yay! It's such a beautiful design, I'm glad to see it at last! I love the second and third prizewinners too. Congrats to the designers!
I do hope someone will send me this postcard this year, hopefully one of my official postcrossing cards! I don't think I actually got one last year. And of course I'll be getting some printed and sending them out this year! I'll have to start saving my sending slots soon... not to mention my stamp budget. :D
Given it was a controversial selection, would it be possible to release the other two prize winners' designs just to add more variety to the WPD? I personally find both beautiful as well and they also deserve distribution. More importantly, It will also encourage fellow designers and mitigate the incident to some degree. :)
I'm disappointed by official attitude. And PLEASE DON'T SEND ME THIS POSTCARD. Thanks.
I like this design for what it is, well done to the winner. The runner ups are also great. My suggestion for next years topic: "spread love, not hate" š (I'm so sad about some political discussions here, postcrossing is usually my happy place, where I'm not confronted with that stuff š¢)
I LOVE THIS DESIGN SOOOO MUCH!!!
Congratulations to designer!!!
Can't wait to send it on WPD:)
I'd love to receive one of this postcard. The design is so beautiful š Congratulations to the winner
Please don't send me this postcard.
Thatās a very beautiful design!
I would be very excited to receive this postcard.
It is a beautiful postcard regardless of who created this. I have ordered 50 to send.
Itās such a good and beautiful design! I would love to send it all over the world!
Please don't sent me this postcard.
I boycotted this postcard, and I was disappointed by the official reply.
The Chinese people will also leave.
Please don't send me this card
If you would not like to receive this card, write it in your profiles please. I will not go through this long (whole) list before I send a postcard.
Thank you.
This postcard is so awfulļ¼please don't sent me it
This postcard is so awfulļ¼please don't sent me it
freedom of expression is equal to deleting comments in postcrossingļ¼ļ¼
Please send this card to me!
Very nice design š
I fell so disappoint to the official reply.I have right to tell people do not send me this card.
I love postcards, but I love my country even more, so please don't send this postcard to me.
To dear dagonno from German---------Chinese boycott this card not due to this Taipei 101.
People fell relax to the card but boycott the printer :)
Dear posting pc users from China,
The Taipei 101 is the most popular tourist site for PRC passport holders on Taiwan island. Quoting Chinese Xinhua News Agency on September 6, 2013, 55 % of overall visitors of this tower were from the PR China and a million annually, and since most people in China consider Taiwan as an integral part of their country they may be happy that this "part of China" is shown here.
On the other hand, I also got a bit surprised (well, my wife is from Peking, but likes Taiwan a lot^^, and thinks the card is totally fine :-)) by the fact that this tower is shown here, but as Paulo has stated, the design was rated, just check the third prize, showing a malaysian flag in a zeppelin. And if I would be a good painter and would have participated, I would have also included a tiny or bigger thing from my region, as people from Peking would have used the underpants tower, Shanghaiese the TV tower, those from Xi'an the Terracotta Army and those from Macau the Grand Casino.
The attractions shown on such card are just a tiny fraction of the world's culture and cannot show all parts of the human civilization.
There is no ROC or Pan-Green-Movement flag on the card, it is just a huge tower, visited mostly by people from China. It shows travelling, interacting and visiting, nothing nationalistic. The painter's political views are not shown on this card anyway.
Relax :)
This card deserves first place. I'd love to get it. But I have a question: where was the drawing created? I mean, it's not hand-drawn. Enlighten me please))
Please don't send me this postcard
This design is very perfect, I will sent it to all over the world.
If you would not like to receive this card, write it in your profiles.
Why don't People in China want to receive this card?
Goodness me! I joined Postcrossing recently so I could get away from all this political nonsense. Please, lovely fellow Postcrossers, can you bear in mind that this is a postcard site, not a place to vent your political views. I am hoping to get some fine postcards from all over the world. And I shall be sending some as well. Peace in Postcards to you all. Helen, Cambridge, UK.
It is well designed, I don't see what's wrong with it, this design has nothing to do with politics. I LIKE IT!
Please send me this postcard!! I want it a lot!
@AGreenapple Please specify. The author does not issue any political statements on her postcrossing nor her instagram account. Just because someone is from Taiwan there is a problem with the author's political views (I cannot see any displayed here)? This card does not show any warfare or military action, does not make fun of PRC's, Japanese or whatsoever institutions nor does the author do so. Postcrossing is a private Portuguese company, it does not need to follow the "supremacy of justice" of the PRC ... which is not built on "love and peace" ... ... ... by the way. Just relax, if the author would have included Beijing's Forbidden city instead of Taipeh 101, plenty of you guys would have jubileed for sure ... and would not argue with "problems with the author" and would have praised the "love and peace" of this particular card.
āTo understand is difficult; to act is easy.' Sun Yat-Sen.
Cheers! :)
I don't like this postcard very much. Please don't send it to me
so cute! looking forward to use It.
I would love to send it all over the world!
Please don't send me this postcard.
@dagonno quote your sentence like the author does not issue any political statements? Please ask your wife howās her feeling when someone just painted some paintings like āfree HKā and prayed for the violence they did. If this comes not to be the political statement, I donāt know what it would be.
And is that just a tower? If I donāt see the red-green mailbox beside, Iāll buy your words. But the fact is, it is the design about the 101.
Cheers.
Plz do NOT send me the official 2021 world postcard day card to me!
The truth is- we were glad to see the official 2021 World Postcard Day postcard were released yesterday on PC website & Instagram, they tagged the creatorās account so more people can see her paintings, then we found the creator did support some big & main arguments happened in China. I donāt think before tagging her some of the admins just knew her account, but as Paulo said, you think āit just a postcardā. But to most Chinese members here, as you can see, itās not just a postcard. And then what did the admin do? Deleted the comments like nothing happened, is that the Postcrossing who said ā no political statementsā? I can understand thereās no result about the card, I admire every designer who uses their best idea to celebrate the happy event for all of us like last year. But no politic is always the first, and Iām sorry to see this situation which gonna be happened on the same day with Chinese National Day.
Please don't send me this postcard.
My hart aches when I see this developing.......
I have not a clear sight on the problem, but i see a lot of people that feel hurt and are not happy with the design.
I am so sorry for everybody, the postcrossing team who put a lot of effort in the project, the designer who see a lot of commotion around her postcard and a lot of people from China that feel offended....
Only thing I can see is.....let world postcard day not be something that divide our community.
I am sure our community can come up with solutions that will bind us together.
Please anybody constructive ideas?
Why delete some Chinese users comments?
Where is the freedom of speech advocated by the West?
This is so pretty. Would love to have one! Great job by the Taiwanese designer.
@Walnuts - there is no "wrong" or "right" political stance. Everyone has the right (or should have, in respective cases) to challenge all kinds of political ideologies, also the "principles of the Chinese" - why not? More than 80 % worldwide are not "Chinese", there is no reason why they should be disallowed by "the Chinese" (and plenty of Chinese have their very own individual beliefs and opinions) to follow their own thoughts, this is not how it works, really not.
It is important to say something against "frustrated" political comments, otherwise it seems to look like a huge majority. It is important to not bow to people and governments for the very sake of "peace" on this very platform. This destroys values that matter - for plenty of people. Unfortunately (but understandingly, postcards and stamps are quite often political or may felt as such, that's life.
Well, it is sad, sometimes...
I do not know anything about the artist. And can't see any political statement on the card. But on the other hand I am not so familiar with political views from either side. And sometimes small things can bring missunderstandings. But I see that some people do not want to receive this card. Please, if you feel so, can you write it in your profile? I'll alway try to send postcard the person would like to receive.
Really love the design š¤©š I didn't see any political issue on a postcard. Can some Chinese netizens Stop BULLYIng others ?
Please no politic in Postcrossing. Let's have fun together !!!
I love this card! It stands for liberty and peace, thus it represents the values of Postcrossing perfectly!
Well done designers! :)
One can use free will to choose which postcard to send (or not).
IĀ“d like to have all those 3 winners released for sending :) <3
Such a lovely postcardš„°š„°š„°
Please send me this postcard !!!
I'm actually embarrassed by some of the comments above. While the image itself does not depict any political views, the artist is a human being and is entitled to her own opinion. She will not be judged out of a competition just because you don't agree with her political stand.
I'm looking forward to send and receive this postcard!
glad to know NY and Paris are on the same land :0 maybe it's what art is, smh
Don't know why there is such a big drama over this thread.
For those 'Postcrosser' that explicitly saying do not wish to receive the said postcard, I would like to remind you that you can only indicate your preference but not demanding your fellows to follow your own directive. Postcrossing is not your backyard that you can do anything you wish.
If you are not happy with it, leave it. Instead of flooding the thread with meaningless comments. Such a disgrace.
The following only represent my personal views and do not involve any political views:
Attitude itself is two sides. Some people like everything, and of course some people will say they don't. In this place where electoral freedom is respected, I believe that everyone's statements are correct without hurting others. When the Chinese player's comments were deleted, I thought I had lost the existence of the word fairness. When postcard transmission and expression are no longer simple, I think the so-called principle of postcrossing is ridiculous. Finally, please don't send me this postcard.
Plz dont send me this postcard.
I'm looking forward to send and receive this postcard.
Such a lovely postcard!
I am very glad to be able to introduce my country to others with postcards on this platform, and I am also glad to know the beautiful scenery and interesting things of many other countries. But we also have our own position. We love our country, so please don't send me this postcard. Please respect us.
Everyone has their own ideas. I think this postcard is not conducive to friendly exchanges, violates the rules of postcard communication and hurts our feelings, so I don't want to receive this postcardć
Why I canāt say āI donāt want to receive this card ā?
What a disappointing card you did.
I donāt think this card is good why I canāt say?
Now that card you didļ¼so you must be judged.
We have the right to criticize
Reply to someone in the comment area who want to know the facts: I am offended not only because the designer painted the 101 building instead of the great wall or Shanghai TV station. For me, I can easily see the political views contained in this picture. This selfishness may be difficult for people from different cultural backgrounds to see intuitively. But I believe that PCer respects the cultural background from all over the world, just as I would not send a Nazi postcard to the Germans even if most German players did not write in "wish" that they did not want to receive a postcard with it. Finally, I hope the organizers can choose carefully in the future. For this event, we hope to open the second and third place works for us to choose.
Why do some people not allow me to discuss politics, but allow others to express political views in pictures?
Congratulations to 3 winners, wish to collect all of them!
Hi everyone! Weāre wrapping up this discussion here, and have made a small update on the bottom of the post. Scroll up to read it!
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