A new series

 I decided to recycle some Virginia Museum of Fine Arts monthly magazines. I created this series using bits from the publication. It was a lot of fun matching faces with backgrounds. And then I just had to add a word or thought bubble. I make myself laugh when I do this. What do you think? 

Landscape Beautification Project

This is one of many images of my Landscape Beautification project. I don't remember if I've posted it before, but here it is again, if I have. I've enjoyed adding paintings to vintage landscape postcards, most of them kind of boring. Finding the right painting to fit into the image, the right angle, the right color, is challenging and fun for me.  This one was sent out to someone - I can't remember who - the other day.

Another altered Postcard

2020-20

I was gifted with an old postcard album. The album had a label inside that said Stuttgart. No other identification. The postcards were mostly black and white. Nothing was written on them and they were in the album with those little black corner thingies that held them in place. There were from France, England, and Germany. They appeared to be from the 1940s. They were found in a house that some acquaintances purchased a number of years ago, and recently, while clearing things out, decided to pass this album along to me. YAY, lucky me. This is the first card that I've altered.

Here's the story I wrote on the reverse:

Motorists rarely used this route, so the large painting didn't create any traffic problems. However, how it got there remained a mystery. It remained there until weather conditions caused it to disintegrate.

New Mail Art collages

Circles at hand #11 2019

This one went to someone in the U.K. who joined my circles group on IUOMA.

#13 2019

This one I wrote a long caption - Something like this: The appearance of the large painting disturbed the tranqility of the lake. The observers were quite perplexed.

Ha ha ha

#14 2019 

Entered in a Mail Art Exhibit

For #14, I wrote something like, the postage stamps fell to earth like blades, causing dismay.
This was an not a natural phenomenon. I sent it to someone in Belgium so I wrote the caption in French.

ha ha ha

The freaking looking animal creature, was made for an exhibit about fakes, frauds, or something like that, in New Hampshire.

I amuse myself with these collage Mail Art pieces. Do they make you laugh?

Mail Art and my Creative Sprint!

#122

#123 And Day 18

#124

#125

Day 6

Day 9 & Day 21

 All this month of October, I've been participating in the Creative Sprint, which is a project of Another Limited Rebellion (which happens to be the business of our son and daughter.)

It's been a wonderful challenge. I did it last April. I didn't plan to do it this time around but then I just jumped in.

Day 17

Above, Day 18, we were to make something to trade for something we wanted. Well, I always want MAIL!! So I traded for some Mail Art from another Sprinter!

Day 6, we were to make something with our eyes closed. I chose the pencils with eyes, closed and made a portrait. I even put the brush of water on with out seeing where I was doing it. I really like the results!







Day 9, we were to take something apart and make something new from it. I opened up a cracker box, made a weaving through it and then put it together inside out.

On Day 21, we were to make something and send it through the mail. Easy Peasy as kids used to say a long time ago, easy peasy for me. I made a water color landscape, put it in the Day 9 box, added a bunched up plastic bag for padding, and sealed it up all over with packing tape. It made it through the mail, arriving at it's destination today!
Yay, USPS. Three day journey only.



On Day 17, we were to teach someone how to do something. I taught people who had basic knitting skills how to make a pair of simple fingerless gloves.

I think a couple people might try it. I hope they do and show me the results.

You can see all of my Creative Sprint things in my Instagram Gallery.

Adding to the Mail Art - A slow but steady year.

#116

 This year, I will not get 365 pieces of Mail Art completed. So it goes. I was out of commission for a bit this year, which set me back but even so, I'm no where near my usual out put.

And because of that, I'm not getting as many in-coming pieces of Mail Art. This makes for a sad mail box. SO, I'm going to get busy and ---

#117

#118

#119

#120

make more and send more. That's the solution!




Card #120 was inspired by Hannah Hoch. See an example of her work below. She's one of my favorite collage artists, and I'm a member of her fan club.

Hannah Hoch

Some Recent Mail Art and A MAIL ART CALL

#186

 Our museum of fine art, VMFA, is having a major exhibit from China opening very soon. I've made use of their promotional materials in a few of my collages.


Lucky me to have such good material to work with.
I'm looking forward to the exhibit, too.

#187

#188

photo credit: M. Dove

My friend has been "bitten" by the Mail Art bug and now she wants to share Mail Art with her community via her art gallery.  Here's a photo of the country side in her area. Lovely, isn't it?

Please send her some landscape Mail Art!



Global Landcapes


The Cooper-Finn Gallery, in the picuresque village of Millbrook, NY, wants to spread the joy of Mail Art.

Where do you live? What does your landscape look like? Interpret it as you wish for this upcoming and on-going exhibit.

Theme: Global Landscapes
(family friendly, please)
Size: standard postcard
Any medium
No jury, no return, documentation on-line

Deadline: open

Mail to:
The Cooper-Finn Gallery
P.O. Box 1355
Millbrook, NY 12545

Mail Art plus

#153

This was my post on Facebook for MAM (Mail Art Monday.) I was really pleased with how I could take two scraps of paper with similar purples and a circle and create this landscape-like composition. I'm really please with myself. And what a good feeling that is.

What gives you that pleased with yourself feeling?

 Here are some chickadees by Milk, that are on display at Quirk Gallery. I had to buy one and I got a tiny one for free! How cool is that. Can't wait for the show to come down so I can have my bird!

 Here are some mice that were on display at the candy counter in Southern Season. I did not buy any. I was tempted, but I didn't do it. Maybe another day.

We've been fortunate to be able to take our grand, Zinn, to the Virginia Museum of Fine Art on Sundays recently. She loves being there and has some favorite pieces. One of them is this large Buddha. She says Buddha so clearly, it makes us smile. A Buddha smile!

Now for the Mail Art!!

#145

#146

#147

 After a bit of a break, I'm back to my Landscape Beautification Project, except this time - I've used sculpture. The figures were from a brochure I picked up in Quebec City. They add a certain je ne c'est quoi to otherwise boring landscapes. Don't you think so?

The Mary Cassatt figure contemplates & complements the tour boat quite nicely, too.

#148

This morning, I was in a mood for making strips and reached into my tin of cut up paper to make this piece. Adding circles is just right for finalizing the composition.

That's a Yayoi Kusama bit in the middle. She just tickles me with her dots!

I've sent some things to an installation piece in Wales. How cool is that? And, soon I'll be sending something off to Siberia. I've convinced my honey to participate in SPY with me, which will be an exhibit in honor of Graham Greene, in Novosibirsk. More on that soon.

Mail Art made on vacation!

 We went to Québec City for our vacation. I had hoped to find a Mail Artist there to have a meet-up with, but no such fortune. 

I did however make a lot of Mail Art while away. These pieces are a sample - I used scaps from found paper and added circles that I brought with me in my traveling Mail Art kit.






I altered commercial postcards and I made water color landscapes (not pleine aire, however.)

It was very relaxing to take a few moments each day and make little art pieces.








We were very inspired  by what we saw at museums and all around us, returning home with ideas for new work,

and memories of a terrific time in a new environment.


I had fun putting the bears into the postcard and am happy with how it turned out.

Optimism!

The Kitties always dress in costume when they visit famous sites.

 Mary England of Uncustomary has set this month's theme as Optimism.

Perfect! If you ask any one that knows me they'll tell you that I'm an optimist, though I went through a period where I wasn't but that was temporary and unusual. Why am I optimistic? I have no idea, I wish I could tell you why. If I could I'd write a book and cure the world of pessimism. oh well.

 My parents were optimists, maybe that helps, being around people like that growing up. Or maybe it's in the DNA? I'm sure there are already books on this subject, probably lots of them, I haven't checked.

There's plenty to get down about, just read the news, watch TV, listen to the radio, all bad stuff that most of us can't do a thing about.

 I'm lucky! I can make stuff and that takes me away from the bad news into the state of bliss that fills me up with optimism.

And I can hang out with children in a fun way, like yesterday spending time with my friends' 6 year old. Wow, what fun that was to just have a conversation with him. Or spending lots of time looking at a photo album of baby photos with my grand, who just loves doing that. Lucky me.

 And then there's the cat, who helps us laugh and forget the bad stuff in the world. Lucky us. A moment to laugh!

Why is this bag so intriguing? He loves getting into it.

I got Mail Art the other day from someone in South Africa. On the outside it said "full," on the inside was a card that said "empty."  I guess optimism is the one that puts the focus on "full."

And here's a quote from Wendell Berry that says "optimism" to me:
"Be joyful /
though you have considered all the facts."

My wish for you - have a full day, full of things that will give you joy and a sense of optimism.

Birds on the lake, postcards, and knitting.

 I took the route through the park the other afternoon. The sky was beautiful, the sun was shining. When I got to fountain lake, there were lots of gulls on it and while I watched they lifted off into the air and circled several times.











There were a handful of us watching, transfixed, in a magic moment. Then, the birds were gone and we all moved again. It was beautiful.

 I stopped into the shop to get food for Bizoo and stopped to see who was looking at me. What a cutie!  I wanted to take him home. I liked his cute "hands" and his awareness of my presence. 

I'm going to a knitting group on Sunday mornings because I want to learn to make fancy stitches, to challenge my brain. I've learned how to knit cables! Yay, I'm happy about that.

Now I'm trying to do a chevron stitch, not having a good time with it. Can't wait for Sunday to get help. I'll show you the results when I get some.

I'm having a lot of fun altering vintage postcards with these vintage children. I'm not doing a 365 project so I'm free to skip days and to make several in one day, which I've done.  Here are two of the 5 I've made so far. I'm calling one "Fiddler in the Lake" and the other "Music to soothe a little bear." 
I'm pondering numbering them, keeping track of who I send to, or not. I don't want to feel like I'm doing a 365. Any thoughts on this for me?