Vaccinate and Celebrate

Following on from the two previous posts, Tofu, like Carina and James has created stunning graphic mail art, this time from hand cut rubber stamps, I think. The visceral response to lots of needles came over me in a wave. It is at once beautiful and scary. 

Vaccinate and celebrate, indeed. Thank you, Tofu, strong, beautiful work, as ever.

 

'Suitable' for the UK postal system

James Gillen's mail art is instantaneously recogniseable.  His graphic imagery dances around the shape. And this is a great shape! The postcard measures 18 x 12 cm.  This would be a problem in America, although from our post office on Cranberry Island I have succesfully mailed odd shaped envelopes etc… I'm not so keen on the way the stamp was hand cancelled. I'll bet the machine would have left a more interesting mark.

from US post office:

You may think that your mailpiece is a "postcard," because it is a single sheet of paper. But to qualify for mailing at the First-Class Mail postcard price, it must be:

• Rectangular 
• At least 3-1/2 inches high x 5 inches long x 0.007 inch thick 
• No more than 4-1/4 inches high x 6 inches long x 0.016 inches thick

Thanks James. If I make it to the US this summer, let's test the rules? Thank you!
 

She Tried her Best and it's SOOOO good.

Carina, Carina, Carina, what could be better? We have our paintings grouped by subjects round our house. In one part of our kitchen there is pastel of Lyra, and a Harwich seagull. Soon we will have a 'silly cat'. Although, seeing this on the screen makes me think I need a text area too. And I have a black and white area (where we wash the dishes, the scullery), but the room with the animals has these sweet white walls between the uprights where this will fit in all ways, perfectly. (So much for my archiving! I will scan it and put a copy in the archive!)

I love this and can I just say that although I agree we need to struggle beyond our comfort zone in order to find new things to say... we also each have our own handwriting and motifs and you've got this babe!

I don't usually share messages from Carina, and this is only one side of our communique but I thought you'd  love to see her notelet. Carina always makes me SMILE. Hap

Hello Petsmo and thank you!

 

Documentation Just Floats in History

There is lots that's apt in this mailing from Joel.  I have had it for quite a while but without time travelling, I couldn't fit documention into my day any earlier than now… June is a busy month! I am also still trying to get the hang of moving my followers over to Follow it.  I think you can follow by clicking on the Atom button at the bottom of the blog feed. It isn't ideal. But enough of my problems.

Sticker Dude is grappling with the best way to become immortal - or at least to create a lasting legacy.  If you read his story, Trying to Work it Out, you will see that his impact is already enormous!  All I know is that at the beginning, when I was hosting mail art calls and putting together exhibitions, I kept all the documentation and the mail art together.  Then I realised that for me it is the individual, not the project that is important so I kept the documention, but I filed the people by first name.  It is all a bit of a stew, but it's my stew and it keeps growing.  

This is complicated when Sticker dude sends me material to archive.  Sticker dude has a very very big, more than one, hanging file in my filing system with lots of mail art from other people in it. It's hard to get your head around, but it's OK.

My favourite lines: 'I don't mind you lost in time

                                just send me the junket that's due'

And Joel, you have my undivided continuous partial attention!

Thank you.

The Safety Spot

Do you put an anti-slip mat in your shower? Have you done your ladder training? Mind you carry your scissors so you won't impale yourself on them and refrain from climbing on grocery store shelves to reach objects too high for you. 

Dave is our safety monitor and he's in charge of some important new features at our favourite mail art community. I don't dust, so there is no fear that i might climb a chair to clear the cobwebs from the ceiling!

I'm terribly behind with my blogging and there is little hope that I will catch up this weekend, so am putting two seperate mailings from Dave in one blog.  Shameful! What's even worse is I don't even have any mailart on the go to promise.  I will.  July is around the corner and I'm not going anywhere except Pitlochry!

 

Ang Letter re - Asemic Collage

Welcome Viviane to my mail art world! Your envelope danced into my mailbox and into my blogging pile where it has languished too long. I love the way you turn letters into characters… they are wonderful! Your sense of colour and movement is beautiful and it made me smile. Great asemic collage!

I apologise for taking so long to blog.  June is a busy month for me.  I will try to respond to your mail art soon. Thank you.

 

from Fike to the UK

So glad to connect with Ficus Strangulensis. Emperor Fluxus Maximus. HHe sent me a message so I sent him some mail art and he replied. It turns out we share a love of portraits and there are more cross-overs but as i don't want to offend anyone, I will keep the message (typed on the back of the map) secret. Thanks Fike, the range of imagery, the envelope art - it  is all wonderful and I like your tag.

June is always a busy month for me but this year it is coinciding with lessening of restrictions so it seems crazier, or maybe I am woefully out of practice. I have plenty of mail art to blog, so stay tuned and hopedully I will be making some again before long!

I'm not sure you will be getting my updates because for the past few weeks I have been  trying to work out how to change my RSS feed.  I now have followit but I haven't transferred all my followers. I will send this out as an email to you so you can follow again… change is good, but it is also time consuming.