John Mattos doesn't think of himself as an artist, and to be sure, few artists sell their works to millions of people at 39 cents apiece.

Artist or not, the Chinatown resident's latest piece is destined to be seen the nation over. His letter-perfect rendition of a female skier bending into a slalom gate is the U.S. Postal Service's official commemorative stamp for the 2006 Winter Olympics, which began Friday in Turin, Italy.

When asked, the 53-year-old Mattos gladly sticks one of his stamps in the center of a sheet of paper and signs, "One of 60 million."

Although Mattos' name is nowhere to be seen on the stamp, designing one of these self-adhesive perforated rectangles is a big deal for an artist or, as Mattos prefers to think of himself, an illustrator. Mattos said on his entry to a six-member committee chosen by the Postal Service, "I would consider it the greatest honor of my career to illustrate a postage stamp."

Not bad for a kid who grew up outside Modesto and whose first paying gig was a sequence of panels promoting an auto body shop. Perhaps presaging his Olympic-themed stamp, Mattos won the gold medal in 2003 from the New York Society of Illustrators from among 10,000 entries.

His style favors bold, single-panel, retro pieces; his work includes posters for the movies "The Rocketeer" and "Silent Movie," the logo of the National Hockey League's Columbus Blue Jackets, and the T-shirt that Dana Carvey as "Garth" wore in the movie "Wayne's World."

Mattos also designed the logo of the 2003 Kentucky Derby and the cover of Time magazine's special Olympic Games issue in 2000. He lives on Grant Avenue with his wife and two adult children and works out of a four-floor walkup on Waverly Place that also houses a Buddhist temple and a lion-dancing studio.

"His work has this heroic feel, which is perfect for the Olympics," said Dennis Gallagher, a former Chronicle art director who runs his own design firm, Visual Strategies, in San Francisco's North Beach. "He does a lot of poster work, and basically, a stamp is just a very small poster. You're getting a simple idea across very quickly. It's a very competitive thing. Some people just focus on stamps. For someone to be solicited like John, it's a big honor."

Although not really a sports fan, Mattos said he likes sports-themed assignments, because "I'm more interested in the spectacle of it."

Mattos' Olympics stamp came with specific and challenging parameters. In general, less is more and generic is essential.

"To do this stamp, it has to be correct," he said. "Everything has to be correct, including the equipment. The woman I worked with (on the committee) said, 'This is going to be the most exasperating job you've ever done.' As much detail as you can take out, the better. It's the opposite of most projects."

For example, the skier's equipment -- helmet, poles, skis -- had to be up to date but derivative of no particular brand. At his desktop computer, he worked off photos of a female skier, in full regalia striking various authentic poses, to arrive at his illustration.

"The biggest challenge is to put more humanity into it, because it's so cold and technical on the computer," Mattos said.

Mattos rejects the notion that he's an artist.

"I've never had a desire to be a fine artist," he said. "I always wanted to be an illustrator. But I don't have any deep, burning desire to do it. I wouldn't sit down and draw a skier on my own."

Burning desire or not, Mattos' talent landed him a plum assignment done in pale blue and white, right there on the upper right corner of that bill you've been meaning to mail.

Look closely: It's one of only 60 million in existence.