#45 My mail box runneth over

Quite a variety of materials and techniques are evident in these--always a delight to receive and send.

Add & pass from G. Bondioli; sent on to Amy Irwen/IUOMA

From Phyllis, California: Playing card mini-book
with information about the Golden Gate Bridge

Cover of Banzai, Issue # 19, October, 2013 from Melissa Fletcher, Jackson Tennesee:
A 'zine dedicated to rubber stamping and mail art

From Esther Kamkar, Palo Alto, California: monotype with poem fragment

To Esther Kamkar from CR: mark-making and collage

To Petrolpetal from CR: Collage and stamping

#44 Mail Art received & sent

I'm one of the lucky recipients of KS Chambers' pop-art soup series. Three postcards have arrived during the past few weeks. And to my surprise, recipes for alligator soup and walrus fin soup actually exist--perfect for a wintry day.

KS Chambers, Anaheim, California, USA
Digital prints

And found in my mail box was a retro memorial to roadside attractions from Connie Jean. 

Connie Jean, Cocoa Beach, Florida
Mixd media collage--note the microwave popcorn box frame

Coffee Love, an add & pass journal, arrived this week. In my stash I found a napkin 'canvas' which I had painted with coffee. I decided to include this little treasure, a memento from Caribou Coffee Cafe in Winter Park, Colorado.   After completing 16 pages, I sent the journal to the artistic  Amy Irwen, Rosemount, MN.

Carmela Rizzuto, Sunnyvale, California
Coffee-painted napkin, complete with paint-by-number instructions

#43 Trick or Treat

Just in time for All Hallows is this entry from Melissa Fletcher. It's a flip book of skeletons and ghouls taking their medicine. The 'queen of art' on the envelope sports a quote from Man Ray. Rubber stamps from http://www.100proofpress.com/ made it possible.

From Melissa Fletcher, USA
Stamping and spray paint

From Melissa Fletcher, USA
Flip book, cover: stamping

Flip book, last page: stamping

#42 Treasure Trove

Many treasures arrived in my mail box this week. Mail Art Martha's exurberant rendition of the blue bird of happiness enlivened my day. 

Fr_Mail Art Martha, UK: watercolor and collage.

From Esther Kamkar comes a postcard with a detailed drawing and a segment of one of her poems: You run home with your treasures, leaves and figs in the upturned hem of your shirt. Read more of her poems at http://www.estherkamkar.com/

Fr_ Esther Kamkar, Palo Alto, California

Lastly, from Patricio/Celestial Scribe comes another of his signature envelopes with surprises inside and  touches of his witty humor.

Fr_ Patricio, Celestial Scribe, Brazil
Envelope (Bottom) with 2 enclosures. Note the Memento Italia/Brasil stamp in upper right. 

#41 Mail Art Mania at Book Arts Jam

The display of mail art from the Mail Art Call, Celebrate IUOMA 25, was a wonderful success. My thanks to all who sent entries! The event was held at the Lucie Stern Community Center in Palo Alto, California. About 300+ visitors viewed the display. At least 160 took the informational handout and stopped to ask questions about mail art and how to become involved in the IUOMA network.  Mail artists stopped to chat about their own experiences. It was a pleasure to meet Raphael'L, an IUOMA member from San Jose.

Visitors spent time examining the postcards, the decorated envelopes (Guido Vermeulen's and Celestial Scribe's were a popular), and reading the 'zines from Jon Foster and Russell Manning. The collaborative book by Jon Foster and myself was a favorite, too. The book takes off tomorrow for the exhibition, 'mail/art/books' at the San Francisco Center for the Book. The exhibition is scheduled for  February 14 - April 30, 2014 in San Francisco, California. View photos of the Book Arts Jam event  below. 

Participant List
The list can be found at blog entry #38 below.

Artiststamps
The free artists stamps that I prepared were  successful in drawing visitors to the display. For anyone who wanted information about perforated paper for artists' stamps/artiststamps: I purchased perforated, non-gummed paper from www.100proofpress.com. Gummed, perforated paper is available, but expensive, search online. Check out http://www.zazzle.com/create  for making stamps to use on USA mail. 

Create Mail Art Station
Part of the display was set aside for visitors to make their own mail art. It was popular with children and adults. Art materials were available: blank postcard-sized paper, colored pens, pencils, markers, collage papers & pictures, rubber stamps, vintage cancelled postage stamps, scissors and glue sticks. Two of the postcards made are seen below.

Paper & stamp collage by Janine Gianino

By suzannehwest.com
Ink drawing made at the Book Arts Jam & mailed to me 

Event Photos
These are views of  the display taken before and during the event. More photos will also be available later at http://Bookartsjam.org/ 

Book Arts Jam, Palo Alto 2013

Mail Art Mania--front table display

Book Arts Jam, Palo Alto 2013

Mail Art Mania--front table display

Book Arts Jam, Palo Alto 2013

Mail Art Mania--side table display

Book Arts Jam, Palo Alto 2013

Mail Art Mania: Create Mail Art Station 

Book Arts Jam, Palo Alto 2013

Mail Art Mania: Visitor looking at envelope by Patricio/Celestial Scribe.

Book Arts Jam, Palo Alto 2013

Mail Art Mania: Friend and founder of BABA, Jone Manoogian, greets visitors.

Book Arts Jam, Palo Alto 2013

Mail Art Mania: Create Mail Art Station in action

#40 Unique duo from Emily Coles, UK

These gifts arrived late last week--what a unique response to the text. One is a hand written poem, Bendix, by John Updike -- a meditation on the humble Bendix washing machine. The text is incorporated into a gelatin plate print that calls to mind the swishing water of such a machine.  The other is a 'found' poem floating in a blue and white background of woven security envelope linings. Such paper can be considered 'found' paper, so it has an additional connotation here. Both arrived in an envelope embellished with blue watercolor swirls. Thank you Emily!

From E. Coles, Bath, UK
Hand written, found poem on woven found papers

From E. Coles, Bath, UK
Hand written poem on Gelatin plate print.

#39 Just arrived!

Several pieces of mail art arrived this past week. Thanks to Petropetal of South Africa whose mail art brings the total number of continents represented to 6!

From Petrolpetal, Milton, South Africa
Collage and red cord wrap

From Raphael'L, San Jose CA, USA
Collage

From Cristina Blank, Worthsee, Germany
Postcard, Collage, Artist's card

!

# 38 Participant List: Celebrate IUOMA 25

This is a list of those participating in the mail art call: Celebrate IUOMA 25.  There are representatives from 6 continents. Thank you all for your creative entries. It has been an honor to exchange art with you.

Mail art answering this Call was displayed on October 19, 2013 at the Book Arts Jam event in Palo Alto, CA, USA   http://bookartsjam.org/  View the report on this event at entry #41.

Karen Alekyan Ayumri, Armenia

Parys  St. Martin         Glenelg, Australia

Guido Vermeulen (3) Brussels, Belgium

Patricio: Celestial Scribe (3)         Curitiba, PR, Brazil

Edna Toffoli         Uberaba, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Anna Banana (3)         Roberts Creek, BC, Canada

Laura Bucci         Vancouver, BC Canada

Denise Souray Bradford, Ontario Canada

Horst Baur         Changsha, China

Nicole Nielsen Helsingor, Denmark

Carina Granlund Petsmo, Finland

“E”         Guivry, France

Valentine Mark Herman (2) Sigean, France

Cristina Blank  (2)         Worthsee,Germany

Roland Halbritter          Nuedlingen, Germany

Michael Wagner Heidelberg, Germany

Katerina Nikoltsou Thessaloniki, Greece

Patrick Anderson-McQuiod Drumshanbo, Ireland

Marina Miletic Drumshanbo, Ireland

Carlo Maria Guidici Lecco, Italy

Ryosuke Cohen Moriguchi, Osaka, Japan

An.U Riga, Latvia

Larissa D. Christchurch, New Zealand

Yulia-Fruit-Ananas Irkutsk, Russia

Markarova Dzerzhinski         Yaroslave,Russia

Petrolpetal Milton, Kwa Zulu Natal, South Africa

Viktoria Robinson         Goteborg, Sweden

Cerulean         Linnaeuslan, The Netherlands

Rudd Janssen         Breda, The Netherlands

Artist unknown Bristol, United Kingdom

Mail Art Martha Beckenham, Kent, United Kingdom

Emily Coles (2) Plymouth, Devon, United Kingdom

Rebecca Guyver Stowmarket, United Kingdom

A. S.                 Winston-Salem, NC USA

Bonnie Jean         Cocoa Beach, FL USA

Borderline Graphics (2) Austin, TX USA

Gayle         USA

Grigori Antonin Minneapolis, MN USA

Elaine Arvati         Youngstown, OH USA

Kelly Bancroft Youngstown, OH USA

K. S. Chambers Anaheim, CA USA

Angie Cope         Port Washington, WI USA

Jon Foster (8) Winston-Salem, NC USA

Angela Gue         Lincoln, CA USA

John Held, Jr.         San Francisco, CA USA

Andrea Jay Staten Island, NY USA

Donna Juliussen Kenai, AK USA

Esther Kamkar Palo Alto, CA USA

Raphael'L  (2) San Jose, CA USA

Lynne Larkin         Joliet, IL USA

Russell Manning (2) Dallas, TX USA

Jinny Pearce         Berkeley, CA USA

A.M. R. (2)         Keene, NH USA

TOFU (2) San Francisco, CA USA

#37 Tofu's Beer

TOFU is exhibiting his beer themed collages at City Beer in San Francisco from October 8 to November 3, 2013. Go to tofuart.com for more details.

#36 Outgoing mail art

I'm finally catching up on my responses to mail art that I have received lately. I'm digging deep into my printmaking file to find sources of inspiration for postcards. It's been fun!

To_ Anonymous artist at Coombe Lane, UK
Mixed media monotype

To_E Coles, UK
Plant print card in gratitude for her plant print book

To_Franklin Art Gallery's Call for Entries, USA
Mixed media monotype

To Mail Art Martha, UK
Mixed media monotype

To_ Russell Manning, Texas
Monotype fragment with artist stamp, Inktense pencil

#36 Final Arrivals, Addendum

Emily Coles of Plymouth, UK sent this accordion-fold book illustrated using plant prints (from ferns growing on her property) with a brief poem added to the design. What a unique addition to this collection! Shown in order are: pages 1 & 2, 3 & 4, 5  & 6;  the reverse of the pages in purple, and lastly the covers. 

Front and back covers

#35 Final arrivals

The deadline for the mail art call is upon us and works have been arriving over the past two weeks. Russell Manning sent a 'zine illustrated with his signature drawings. The 'zines by Jon Foster and Russell Manning have added a new dimension to the type of media sent in response to this call. The works below are a good example of the wide variety of media used by mail artists.

From unknown artist at Coombe Lane, Bristol, UK/Front 

From unknown artist at Coombe Lane, Bristol, UK/Reverse
Mixed media painting and handwriting

From Marina Miletic, Drumshanbo, County Leitrim, Ireland
Collage of gold foil, ribbon and ephemera

From Patrick Anderson-McQuoid, Drumshanbo, County Leitrim, Ireland
Photograph and altered envelope

From Russell Manning, Dallas, TX, USA
'Zine using collage of hand-drawn images

From Jon Foster, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
Vintage postcard circa 1950's--Atlantic Beach, NC