Holism from Simon Warren

Behind the holes is a page from the REAL postal ledger, Simon has emptiness in his holes.  I hardly know what to think of Simon's recent departures!

Simon Warren is making a version of the trash quilt!

Simon has sent me A4 card instalments for quite some time now.  These are punctuated by responses (white envelopes with letters inside) to the occasional replies I send.  I mean to respond more often but unlike Simon I need days to reply.

Interpretation of mail art is a curious thing because unless the dialogue goes back and forth and gets refined, the recipient 'owns' the interpretation.  Strange to think that my meaning might be nothing like Simon's meaning and my response may be irrelevant to the initial response. So when I say Simon is making his own take on the TRASH QUILT, I may be barking up the wrong tree entirely. Still.

Simon has a way of inspiring new work from me and no. 106 (top) was the catalyst for a fusepo response (fused plastic trash quilt) that seemed to arrive from somewhere else.

In the end I did not send Simon the original as not ready to part with it, but the version I sent him is differently inspiring (to me). 

Later that day, I visited facebook to upload some work by other mail artists to the IUOMA site and was delighted to see that Simon had inspired another artist /mail artist / poet, Theresa Williams. I read on her facebook page that:

The poem "torch" has just been nominated for BEST OF THE NET.http://districtlit.com/post/39243739047/poems-by-theresa-williamshttp://districtlit.com/post/39243739047/poems-by-theresa-williams

Read it, it is wonderful!

While I was making my piece in response to Simon, I wondered about why certain people help us to find what we want to say. 

Simon Warren 100, 101,102 and some thoughts

I don't always know what to make of Simon's instalments.  I think that's OK. I try to reason with them sometimes and other times I come back to them. Sometimes i get letters from Simon (after I send something to him) and between the last posting and these, I got a letter.  Although I found it a bit difficult to know what Simon's words were meant to make me feel, as seems to happen they helped me to think differently.  I have sent Simon some code.  Are his instalments code?  Is he trying to break me? 

When I am perplexed I revert to what I know, looking for something beautiful to take away, a whitewash of all that disturbs me.

I took some of the words Simon has sent me over the summer, quickly, and somewhat randomly and this is what they said:

between is a gulf

whereas from the perspective

of today

are difficult to locate

does not live

in the early hours

when the day starts

many of the stories

never had

cannot go anywhere

I did not want

Box

A key

The slot

And letters

Erry less

Foreigners in time

The black of Simon's ink

The first, in this latest interrupted series - interrupted because there are missing instalments, belongs in The repository of memory thank you Simon for helping me to classify what you send.  Having said that,  I might classify #74 as memory and poetry. #83 falls into the memory catagory, but with that nebulous Simon point of view that might be a blend of truth, reality, memory, the senses or something created in the moment as the pen touches the paper.
What I notice about the ink Death series is firstly their intensity.  My particular favourite is #86.
I have a plan for my response! I feel I need to wait for the missing pieces but this is problematic as some arrived in England and were hand carried to Maine while others were placed in box 84 here on the island, and I don't know whether they are missing here or there. I will fill in the gaps as they arrive, anyway.

Catching up with Simon Warren

Simon! I love seeing into your visual mind too. I think I mentioned that when I had the Memories are Made of this exhibition at Old House (Pimlott Foundation) I took all the mailart that had been sent in (uncounted but lots and lots) and either displayed the pieces or had a big box for people to look through.  I had 60 something from Simon so took a special Simon box for those and laid out the newest - the six previous ink dances.  I had lots of interest in the ink dances (particularly) from artists and other people liked reading about Tring etc.

Years ago I got to know Jennifer Bartlett's work. Her book, In the Garden, is one of my most treasured sources for inspiration. http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/jennifer-bartlett-698.  In the 80s she went to Italy and rented a house and drew from the garden, which did not inspire her at first, but became a constant source of experiments in the end. I find that Simon uses his life in a similar way.  Perhaps we all do, one way or another.

I have been quite snowed under - not a good choice of cliche as it's piping hot today - but you know what I mean... so am only just beginning the process of archiving all the wonderful stuff I've received recently. I sent Simon a little nothing yesterday to ackowledge all the instalments I have received from him and until today not documented.  I wonder if Simon knows I'm the judge of the IUOMA MOBMA competition this month.  http://iuoma-network.ning.com/group/iouma-mobma-museum-of-bad-mail-art We have loosely asked for portraits.  Simon, these don't qualify.

Mailart: conversation or catalyst? Incoming and outgoing - SImon Warren

Simon is sending me imagery. 

I am sending simon imagery back.  

When we write are we hoping to shift, find our own understanding, connect or simply to see what happens?