Visual and commentary on Dada - Moan Lisa

On Spy Track (collab boekie) Amy Irwen and Rebecca Guyver

It feels a little funny blogging my own work here at the Postal Ledger… but Amy Irwen has taken my Spy Notebook and 'used' it in a way that adds depth, humour, additional meaning and aesthetic pizazz, so I guess it's OK! 

I'm guessing Amy has used a local paper to find some of the words that allude to following, watching, note-taking about life from the point of view of the spy.  The gobblydygoop, nonsense phrases suggest the incomprehensible that 'spy language' must be.  Trashpo ephemera makes it all even better!

The idea for the Spy Notebook was in response to Alexander Limarev's mail art call: SPY, an inspiring and apt concept for 2014-2015!

Thanks so much Amy!  I'm not sure I know how you parted with it!

Harmony in the forest - Collages by Nancy Bell Scott

These collages and trash poems by Nancy may be my favourite pieces from Nancy, of all time.  Text as line, a breathtaking depth layered with ink and colour suggest the weather, the night and something malevolent in the forest.  The uprights seem built, repurposed, sculptural. It is a world that makes one want to climb… and Nancy does with light what I ache to do.

Fabulous pieces may launch a second career in Suffolk!  I am sure everyone will be reaching up to hold these haptic beauties at the show in Colchester in a few week's time and they'll be saying 'who is this Nancy Bell Scott?'  Thank you enormously, Nancy! and I didn't even have to beg!

New Year's greetings from Keiichi Nakamura

Great to get these cards from Keiichi! On the back of the envelope reads, 'Happy New Year!' If I try to read my fortune in them I see energy, costume parties, some complictions and lots of fun. I notice that the stamp has the same palette as the cards. That's the kind of thing that I LOVE. 

I wonder if Keiichi intended the drawings for my Spirit of the Forest mail art call.  If you haven't sent me anything yet, consider sending.  You can read more and see some of the images here: 

http://spiritoftheforestmailart.blogspot.co.uk

In the meantime, many thanks to Keiichi! Thanks for a 2014 full of wonderful mail art!

Graffiti from France

You have to look closely at the surface of the photograph to make out the graffiti Dave Plumb, from Suffolk who went to France over New Year, sent me. 

' George……. if what you say is true then why the impotance of erasing the past?'

Luckily Dave has transcribed what he has seen in Paris, scrawled on a building.  Today sent me this!

'Hi Rebecca ,

 

When we arrived in Paris for our Christmas break we were walking from the Richard -Lenoir Metro to our hotel in Rue Amelot when I noticed some 

interesting graffiti on a wall in Rue Pelee . I wrote these words down and used them as part of the postcards I sent you as they were indicative of the Parisian

enigma which requires as much thought as you are prepared to give. What I didn't realise until the events unfolded was that these words were written just yards from the offices of Charlie Hebdo. This makes them even more interesting than I realised .'

My Ritual with Aristide 3108

What I will call Aristide 3108's New Year's Ritual, a looking back and consolidation of a year. You may remember thatI was honoured with my very own ENCARTED some months ago. and here ARistide 3108 tells me that 'I cut it' with 2015. I suspect Aristide is a bit like me, saving her leftovers until they spill over.  I see vestiges of encarteds repurposed - TRASHPO - of sorts.

 I am not really doing this mailing justice.  It arrived nested in envelopes in a particular way.  I opened it and then wasn't sure how it had been…  As usual, I get a version and then an original. It is layer, haptic ATC. And it has a steak of hot pink that speaks to me.

 This is the back of one of the envelopes. a corner of an envelope with a different version

 On the back of the original ATC are the names of 2014 ENCARTEDs. There I am, near GAC!

Great reminders, philosphical mail art.  I am already imagining how to reply, but it may be a little while… Many thanks, so much fabulous food for thought to get me through the grey days of early 2015!

We all love FIGGY pudding! belated Christmas greetings from Stripygoose

I'm sure you all know that I have a daughter we call Figgy and that I live in England. Well Stripygoose sent me a favourite Christmas greeting.  although I am not particulalry partial to figgy pudding, I should be because I LOVE FIGGY. thank you Striygoose.  time to put those christmas cards away until next december when I can begin cutting them up again!

Return Banana from Anna

The other day we had a visitor come for a few days.  I had never met him, he works with Patrick but I felt like I knew him from overheard Skype calls. After dinner one night I tried to explain mail art, by showing him examples.  The visitor was French and lives in Tanzania.  He was open to mail art, but what perplexed him was that he thought from my description (obviously faulty) that there was no correspondence in mail art.  This return banana is proof that even if it takes a few months some of us correspond.  For me, mail art is one way only if the person you send to doesn't respond. But what is responding? Soemtimes I don't have time at the very moment I delight in something to blog it or respond to it.  But at the moment I delight I have responded…  Ideally, for me, mail art is about communicating, sometimes with words, sometimes with images, sometimes with ideas sometimes with all and more. 

I sent Anna a sewn banana and an mini banana book, 'Almost a Banana' a few months ago.  While Anna's art life revolves around bananas, mine goes bananas annually. So it's encouraging to get a note on the back of the postcard where Anna thanks me for my mini-book and says,  'I love the variations I receive… on bananas — a truly amazing demonstration of human and human creativity.'

Anna also told me about other artisst who stitch their mail art.  One artist, Angela Behrendt even stitches banana stamps! Anna included a generous supply of stamps too!  Many many thanks!

New Year's Wish from Richard Baudet

Such a joyous wish from Richard! Many thanks.  I have great hopes!

Under Creation - Jay Block

This piece by Jay has been creeping up on me.  After a few days, I see lots of subtlety and a tension between the verticals and their lean.  The metal jacket in the background evokes the strength of the two icons on the stamps and then there is the way the shapes and colour break up the space!

I also like that Jay keeps me abreast of happenings in Massachusetts!  Many thanks, Jay.

Requiem for a mouse - (drawing) Aaron Morgan

Great to receive this from Aaron, a first mailing!  I see that Aaron is the illustrator for this poem.  Both poem and piece of mouse impress me!  Many thanks and hopefully 2015 will expand and I will have more time for mail art!

You can find more of aaron's work here:
http://artaaronmorgan.com

Ringing in the New Year with gusto - Trash boekie from Vizma Bruns!

 After all the excesses of Christmas looking back over this wonderful trashbook that I received fromVizma before Christmasthis book reminds me how everything can and should be saved for potential sharing with my precious network! Vizma can create rhythm and stories with absolute crap (and a few choice stamps).  This book is postcard size, sort of. Great stuff!  Of course I am particulalry fond of the chapter about wetsuits.