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When we imagine the Battle of Baltimore, the bombardment of Fort McHenry and the penning of the Star Spangled Banner, we almost always see through the eyes of Francis Scott Key, miles away on the deck of a British warship. Annapolis artist Greg Harlin wanted to show another view.
“I wanted to flip that and try a view from a soldier’s viewpoint, to feel what it was like inside the Fort enduring the terrifying bombardment,” Harlin tells Bay Weekly.
In the coming months, a lot of people are going to share Harlin’s vision. His illustration of six American solders manning a cannon firing at the British ships will soon appear in one of the most ubiquitous of media: a U.S. Postal Service first-class stamp. Starting Saturday September 13, Harlin’s name might not become known worldwide, but his work certainly will. He is the creator of the new Fort McHenry commemorative stamp, which has its Day-of-Issue Ceremony Saturday morning at the Fort. The ceremony is part of the weeklong celebration of the 200th anniversary of the conclusion of the War of 1812 and the penning of our National Anthem.
Harlin has lived in Annapolis since 1981, when he arrived to join a design studio. He now does mostly historical paintings and book illustrations. His first stamp was the Georgia Statehood stamp in 1988. In early 2013, he was approached by the U.S. Postal Service to do the Fort McHenry stamp. He created six designs, with the Postal Service making the final choice.