Matthew Warburton ads “Stamp Designer” to his Extensive Resume

It has been many years since Matthew Warburton travelled the streets of Millbrook as a boy attending elementary school in what is now known affectionately as “The Old School” and then MillbrookHigh school in what is now SouthCavanPublic School.  At the time his mother, Ruth was well known as the director of the Community Choir.  We were reminded of this family recently when his father Eric came into the post office to make a special stamp purchase.  These stamps had been designed by his son Matthew.  How does one become a stamp designer?  It is a bit of a long story… 

            During high school, Matthew always had an interest in design.  The covers of his projects had often been more interesting to him than their content, and he had won a local poster design competition to some acclaim.  Both his Dad and his maternal grandfather were stamp collectors, and Matthew was intrigued by some interesting stamps designed by a Toronto firm.  When it came to go on with his studies, Matthew was interested in forestry but had a back up plan of studying Graphic Design.  Sometimes things work out as they should, and Matthew found himself at DurhamCollege in the Graphic Design program.  He was one of the lucky graduates who was employed immediately after college as his third year placement host offered him a job.  He describes the employment practice in this industry at the time “like an apprenticeship system. You started out doing paste-up and other medial tasks, but that’s how you learned how to make other people’s ideas work.”  That last part is key-   “Design is not art, and many … don’t seem to realize this simple fact. You’re designing for someone else, not yourself.”  This philosophy is evident in the brands he has developed for clients. 

            Another critical ingredient to his success was his attitude.  As low man on the totem pole, Matthew embraced grunt work and took full advantage of the expertise surrounding him by constantly asking questions and trying things out to learn what worked and what didn’t.  Shortly after, a reference from a colleague landed him a Production Designer position at international design firm Gottschalk + Ash in their Toronto office which is the firm which had designed the stamps which had piqued his interest long ago.  He focused on brand development and worked on some stamp production, building his repertoire of skills. 

            After 7 years in Toronto, Matthew moved west, following the footsteps of younger brother Alex who was perfecting his snowboard skills in Whistler.  It’s a move that Matthew does not regret.  An avid mountain biker and snowboarder himself, it proved to be an easy transition.  He finds the quality of design work in Vancouver comparable to projects in Toronto, and the slightly lower income earned is more than offset by the excellent quality of life.    He is a dedicated professional with many awards under his belt, including the peer recognition of a Fellowship from the Graphic Designers of Canada for his contribution to graphic design in Canada.  e is aHeHe currently teaches design at the B.C. Institute of Technology, where he shares his passion for design.  His website www.emdoubleyu.com  further highlights his creativity as well as his love of outdoor recreation. 

             In 1996, his first stamp design was published it commemorated the 125th anniversary of B.C.’s entry into Confederation.  After complaining to Canada Post about the poor design quality of some of their later stamps, he was asked to join their Stamp Advisory Board, on which he served for 7 years.  His recent stamp project began as a research report about Canadian motorcycles.  His stamps are illustrations of Canadian motorcycles the 1908 CCM and the 1914 Indian models. He explains the Canadian connection:  “CCM is a recognizable brand to many Canadians for bicycles and hockey gear but they made motorcycles in the early 1900s. Indian is more famous as an American brand, but they were made in Toronto for a few years which made it a Canadian motorcycle.”  He expects 2 more stamps to be issued in 2015. 

            While he is enthusiastic about life in Vancouver, he has very fond memories of growing up in Millbrook.  He appreciates the small class sizes of his high school.  The outdoor winter activities such as skating on Millbrook Pond and along the creek, playing hockey in the arena and the ponds all around town, tobogganing and go-carting down the jail hill provide many happy memories. In Millbrook he developed his love of motor vehicles – he delivered newspapers in winter time by snowmobile and rode motorbikes in the Ganaraska forest or around the track at the fairgrounds.  He wishes his children could have the same freedom he experienced here with no adults around and with very few rules or restrictions. 

            Did I mention that when he moved to Vancouver he relocated on a motorcycle?  

            A special thanks to Marilyn Lunn for providing the idea for this article.  We welcome story suggestions from our readers – this is YOUR community newspaper.  Get involved!

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