When the Postal Service asked Rafael López to design a commemorative stamp representing Latin American culture in the United States, he knew exactly what to show: a mariachi band.⁠ ⁠ And he knew just one stamp was not going to be enough.⁠ ⁠ "The contribution of mariachi music is huge. We cannot just recognize it with one stamp. We need to create at least a series of five," the Mexican American artist told NPR at the launch this month in the Smithsonian's National Postal Museum.⁠ ⁠ "So I went back to the director and I said, what if we actually have five different musicians? You can't fit five of them in one little step. I don't think that's enough honor, you know, to mariachi music."⁠ ⁠ He used his upbringing in Mexico City as part of the inspiration for the stamps, especially the band members and the vibrant colors that fill the stamps, which have an initial print of 18 million sets.⁠ ⁠ López said he wanted to put the focus on the features of the characters depicted on the stamps, leaving a non-descript background with the pastel-colored homes of Mexican antiquity.⁠ ⁠ Image: Gabriel J. Sánchez/NPR⁠ ⁠ Tap the link in our bio for more.⁠ ⁠