Many years ago I received a letter from a friend of mine, Ruth, and she had made the envelope out of a page from a magazine. Because I am a fan of recycling, and admittedly love to make things from magazines, I stole her idea (with her encouragement), and though, in this electronic age, I don’t write as many letters as I used to, I still make what I have come to refer to as “Earth Envelopes” when I do send snail mail. Over the years, my envelopes have become increasingly more complex and decorative. If you would like me to make you an envelope and mail you the instructions to start making your own, just send me your name and address. You can email it to me at [email protected]. Ruth passed away several years ago, and I like to think that her habit of recycling magazine pages into small works of mail art lives on in this way.I am fascinated with the idea of mail art. It can be a way for artists to stay creative and to also meet others with a similar interest. According to one mail art site, mail art is an alternative to ”the elitist and exclusionary rules of art projects which employ judges who select entries based upon the whims of the few; mail art welcomes the participation of nearly anyone who would like to create and share the results of their efforts with others.” I like the inclusive nature implied in this statement. I like thinking that at any given moment, the postal system, worldwide is facilitating artists in the delivery of their small works!
Another art form which is similar in its approach is the Artist Trading Card. I first became acquainted with this art form when one of my students suggested that my creative writing and photography classes collaborate on a trading card exchange. For those who are not familiar with ATCs, they are small works of art which are about the size of a baseball card (2 ½ x3 ½ inches). They can be made of any material, using any technique, and are usually traded, not sold. For three years, when I had a studio space large enough to host a hundred or so ATC makers, I held an annual trading card exchange for my students and several art students in the area. The way this works is that each artist brings his or her cards, usually showcased in the plastic pages designed to house baseball cards, and they trade with the other artists. Sometimes this is a one to one trade; sometimes, especially if a card is really popular and highly valued by the traders, the ratio may be skewed. ATC traders at such an event always want to be the one who has the card everyone is trying to get! If you would like access to thousands of examples of ATCs, just go to Pinterest and check out the thousands of offerings. The variety and creativity are astounding! If, after viewing the examples, you wish to become a trader, you can find all kinds of themed entry calls online.
As an artist, photographer and writer, I enjoy being able to combine my interests on ATCs and other forms of mail art. Here is an ATC based on the poem from my last posting.