Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee Meeting Recap (July 2024)

KellenCoin

My name is Kellen Hoard, and I currently serve as one of the Representatives of the General Public on the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee. I am an undergraduate student, and the youngest person to ever serve on the Committee. For those of you unfamiliar with the CCAC, it was established in 2003 by Congress to advise the Secretary of the Treasury on the themes and designs of all US coins and medals. The CCAC serves as an informed, experienced and impartial resource to the Secretary of the Treasury and represents the interests of American citizens and collectors.

This is the third installment of my updates about what the CCAC is doing at its meetings. I think it is critical that the collecting community have insight into and input to the CCAC, and will try to answer any questions you may have.

Here is my update for the CCAC meeting on July 15 and 16, 2024.

Day 1
1. Candidate designs for the 2026 Semiquincentennial Dime were discussed. A final recommendation by the committee won't be made until our October meeting, but our review of the design portfolio at this meeting provided the opportunity for the committee to provide advice/direction/constructive criticism to the Mint as it works with its artists to provide the best options possible.

2. Candidate designs for the 2026 Semiquincentennial Quarter commemorating the Declaration of Independence were discussed. A final recommendation by the committee won't be made until our October meeting, but our review of the design portfolio at this meeting provided the opportunity for the committee to provide advice/direction/constructive criticism to the Mint as it works with its artists to provide the best options possible.

3. Candidate designs for the 2026 American Eagle Platinum Proof Coin were discussed. A final recommendation by the committee won't be made until our October meeting, but our review of the design portfolio at this meeting provided the opportunity for the committee to provide advice/direction/constructive criticism to the Mint as it works with its artists to provide the best options possible.

4. Candidate designs for the 2026 Semiquincentennial Quarter commemorating the U.S. Constitution were discussed. A final recommendation by the committee won't be made until our October meeting, but our review of the design portfolio at this meeting provided the opportunity for the committee to provide advice/direction/constructive criticism to the Mint as it works with its artists to provide the best options possible.

Day 2
1. Candidate designs for the 2026 Semiquincentennial Half Dollar were discussed. A final recommendation by the committee won't be made until our October meeting, but our review of the design portfolio at this meeting provided the opportunity for the committee to provide advice/direction/constructive criticism to the Mint as it works with its artists to provide the best options possible.

2. Candidate designs for the 2026 Semiquincentennial "Best of the Mint" Silver Medals were discussed. These 2026 Best of the Mint Series will include gold coins featuring the 1804 Dollar, 1907 Saint-Gaudens High Relief $20 Gold Coin, 1916 Mercury Dime, 1916 Standing Liberty Quarter, and 1916 Walking Liberty Half Dollar. Each gold coin will have a companion silver medal, which we considered in this meeting. Here are the designs we recommended for each:

a. 1804 Dollar

b. $20

c. Mercury Dime

d. SLQ

e. WLH

Let me know if you have any questions about the work done in this meeting; I will try to answer as well as I can, but there are contraints on what I am able to share publicly. Please remember that the CCAC does not make the final decision; instead, it makes its recommendation (alongside the Commission of Fine Arts) to the Secretary of the Treasury. If you would like to watch the July meeting in full in order to see all of the deliberations, it is available on Youtube here and here.

Creg

Thank you for including the forum members, Kellen. I’ll roll with those designs.

BStrauss3

And to continue to flog a deceased equine, I'll say that it's sad the mint works up designs that look so nice in LARGE pencil drawings, look OK in proof finishes, and look horrible in circulation quality coins.

For example, I like WING-3. I think it's sharp-looking, innovative, and has nice negative space. But the areas I've highlighted are going to have minimal if any differentiation in the circulation coin and it will look muddy.

Pnies20

@BStrauss3 said:
And to continue to flog a deceased equine, I'll say that it's sad the mint works up designs that look so nice in LARGE pencil drawings, look OK in proof finishes, and look horrible in circulation quality coins.

For example, I like WING-3. I think it's sharp-looking, innovative, and has nice negative space. But the areas I've highlighted are going to have minimal if any differentiation in the circulation coin and it will look muddy.

Why does it look like an anime character?

ProofCollection

@KellenCoin Very cool, thanks for the update.
If you get the chance, can you float the idea of bringing back a special issue of silver nickels?

291fifth

@Pnies20 said:

@BStrauss3 said:
And to continue to flog a deceased equine, I'll say that it's sad the mint works up designs that look so nice in LARGE pencil drawings, look OK in proof finishes, and look horrible in circulation quality coins.

For example, I like WING-3. I think it's sharp-looking, innovative, and has nice negative space. But the areas I've highlighted are going to have minimal if any differentiation in the circulation coin and it will look muddy.

Why does it look like an anime character?

Probably because so many younger artists grew up with anime art and learned to draw by copying the style at a very early age.

MsMorrisine

@Pnies20 said:

Why does it look like an anime character?

they want to make national dignity into a cariacture

messydesk

They could have just used mine.

jesbroken

Serious question. Have we truly removed artistry from our coin design? Are there not ANY artists that can design a coin without block design figures similar to Anime? I do not understand, it feels like the era of art noveau, but without any true goals. JMO
Jim

jesbroken

I'm sorry Kellen. I do appreciate the fact that you think enough of the forum to allow us to view the proposals, but they are all alike with no beauty, again JMO.
Jim

Aotearoa

@jesbroken said:
Serious question. Have we truly removed artistry from our coin design? Are there not ANY artists that can design a coin without block design figures similar to Anime? I do not understand, it feels like the era of art noveau, but without any true goals. JMO
Jim

I couldn’t agree more. I truly mean no disrespect but I find the designs hideous.

Cranium_Basher73

@Aotearoa said:

@jesbroken said:
Serious question. Have we truly removed artistry from our coin design? Are there not ANY artists that can design a coin without block design figures similar to Anime? I do not understand, it feels like the era of art noveau, but without any true goals. JMO
Jim

I couldn’t agree more. I truly mean no disrespect but I find the designs hideous.

Some of the designs were from the 2025 proposed High Relief Liberty gold coin that didn't get recommended.

Cranium_Basher73

.....and some of the designs had an art style reminiscent of characters that could've been from a Cartoon Network show from the late 90's to early 2000's.

KellenCoin

@BStrauss3 said:
And to continue to flog a deceased equine, I'll say that it's sad the mint works up designs that look so nice in LARGE pencil drawings, look OK in proof finishes, and look horrible in circulation quality coins.

For example, I like WING-3. I think it's sharp-looking, innovative, and has nice negative space. But the areas I've highlighted are going to have minimal if any differentiation in the circulation coin and it will look muddy.

Hi, Burton,

Thanks as always for your comment. I would just note that this won't be a circulating coin; it will be a silver medal.

Thanks!

KellenCoin

@ProofCollection said:
@KellenCoin Very cool, thanks for the update.
If you get the chance, can you float the idea of bringing back a special issue of silver nickels?

It's a neat idea! There are some likely production barriers but it's always worth raising. I suggest submitting the idea to info@ccac.gov so that we can have it on the record as a suggestion.

KellenCoin

@jesbroken said:
Serious question. Have we truly removed artistry from our coin design? Are there not ANY artists that can design a coin without block design figures similar to Anime? I do not understand, it feels like the era of art noveau, but without any true goals. JMO
Jim

It's totally fair to not prefer that style, or even any of the designs of any style. I would, however, note that there are many designs which do not take this exact type of art form. Here are just a few from the portfolios we just recently considered (not necessarily an endorsement of these designs):

jesbroken

I do see some artistry in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th design, but the font does not go well with the design at all. I think the renderings should emphasize the rims as they allow organization of the central design with the font of the printed material. JMO.
Thank you for your post.
Jim

KellenCoin

@jesbroken said:
I do see some artistry in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th design, but the font does not go well with the design at all. I think the renderings should emphasize the rims as they allow organization of the central design with the font of the printed material. JMO.
Thank you for your post.
Jim

Yep, the fonts are something we can make recommendations on if we suggest a design! Always helpful to have that feedback.

winesteven

I love the Eagle with the flag design on the $20. Can the flag be colorized?

As many others noted, many of the other designs look like they were submitted by Elementary School kids, ESPECIALLY the Merc Dime!

Steve

MsMorrisine

for that stove pipe to be where it's at, the tiny shack would have the stove blocking the door

andd it looks like the roof will leak

MsMorrisine

edited

MsMorrisine

d'oh!

looks like the pipe on the other shack needs to be moved back... i'll let viewers use their imagination

MsMorrisine

the fin(?) behind the windmill needs to be bigger and moved upwards to the center

winesteven

@MsMorrisine said:
the fin(?) behind the windmill needs to be bigger and moved upwards to the center

And one would think they’re using professionals to design and check for technical accuracy that are competent? Ha!

Good job, @MsMorrisine! YOU should get a check from them as a competent consultant!

Steve

MsMorrisine

here's a edit with above changes. perhaps it'd look better without the second/middle stovepipe

messydesk

@MsMorrisine said:

for that stove pipe to be where it's at, the tiny shack would have the stove blocking the door

andd it looks like the roof will leak

Is she holding onto an oh sh*t handle?

hfjacinto

Is the Tsunami going to take out the tall buildings?

CRHer700

@messydesk said:

@MsMorrisine said:

for that stove pipe to be where it's at, the tiny shack would have the stove blocking the door

andd it looks like the roof will leak

Is she holding onto an oh sh*t handle?

I wasn't going to comment on this, but it does look like liberty is is holding onto an overhead baggage compartment handle.

NeophyteNumismatist

I like the remake of the Draped Bust and the SLQ design.

Copperindian

@KellenCoin: appreciate your informative post(s). The designs, though? Not so much. Maybe the SLQ; not the others. JMO…..

Catbert

While consensus will never be obtained here, I think the more contemporary styling shown in the original post may be more appealing to a younger generation generally.

I do really like that Robert Scott version too!

CRHer700

@Catbert said:
While consensus will never be obtained here, I think the more contemporary styling shown in the original post may be more appealing to a younger generation generally.

I do really like that Robert Scott version too!

Who qualifies as the "younger generation"?

Catbert

Those who are a heckuva lot younger than me (60s).

CRHer700

Must be younger than me too.

jacrispies

@Catbert said:
While consensus will never be obtained here, I think the more contemporary styling shown in the original post may be more appealing to a younger generation generally.

Not this younger generation, must appeal to the generation after me (probably chewing on coins at the moment).

Obverse of the SLQ tribute is the only design worth considering, everything else is a hard pass. Looking forward to some iconic original designs. The artistry team is acting like all of the iconic designs have already been taken with all these tribute and copy designs nowadays!

dcarr

@hfjacinto said:
Is the Tsunami going to take out the tall buildings?

.

No. The Sword is.

.

CRHer700

Also, (I couldn't help myself) why do farmers live in shacks? I lived in Illinois for most of my life and have several relatives who are farmers, and they do not live in anything close to that kind of shacks. They do live in houses.

OAKSTAR

JeffersonFrog

My momma always told me, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all," so this is my post.

Well, I can't help it. I even invoked the 24-hour rule; it needs to be said. You recommended putting an outhouse on the Mercury dime companion medal? An outhouse. That's a vent, not a stovepipe, and there are no windows; it's an outhouse! Not a farmhouse, an outhouse. On a silver medal? Produced by the US Mint? An outhouse? Really? Helloooooo ...

CRHer700

@OAKSTAR said:

No fasces on the reverse.