A few of my favorite things…

First thing’s first: there’s gonna be a SF Correspondence Co-op birthday party and you’re all invited. Mom and Dad have left for the weekend, so it’s gonna be epic. Take a look here for more info!

Alrighty. Back to the glamour shots:

Here’s a fast little something-or-other, more of a photo posting than anything. I thought I’d share a few snaps with you that I’ve been taking around the neighborhood lately…

(I seem to “collect” photos like this…I snapped this one in the lobby of the Congress Hotel in Chicago…)

(and then: for weeks — no, more like months! — my PO had a giant cart of these mail bags hidden away inside the lobby and around a corner, right by the mailboxes. No one would have known, and I was always tempted…so so so tempted. But I never took one.)

(mail pouch padlocks — aren’t they wonderful?!?! Those of you who know me well also know that I collect all manner of locks and keys…I’m still one the prowl for one of these guys. I know I’ll come across one when I least expect it, which will make the whole thing even more magical.)

In all things postal, I remain –

–JH

–JH

Spring in SF means a “fog free” zone…

just like candy!

It feels almost like spring here in SF: the trees and flowers in my neighborhood are coming into bloom , girls are sporting peep-toe sandals, and there’s a certain something in the air. This “something” is hard to pin down, but personally, it makes me want to break out my vintage sundresses and have a gin-soaked picnic in Golden Gate Park.

celebrating Japan's "Boy's Day" in SF...

In Japan it is currently hanami season, a time when cherry blossom trees are weighted down with an avalanche of  puffy pink blossoms and folks gather en masse to socialize and admire the flowers. Hanami viewing parties are a chance for friends, family, and co-workers to celebrate the beginning of spring, as well as have kick-ass picnics.

see for yourself: delicious design!

Back here in the US, he USPS released their Cherry Blossom Centennial postage stamp earlier this month, and I was pretty excited to get my hands on a couple sheets at the local PO. What a great starting point for a new edition of postcards! I absolutely adore the design of these stamps…

bright, festive, vibrant!

So that means I’ve been busy in the studio, working away on these goodies. The photos above and below show the “first” edition of twenty postcards; another “second” (different) twenty are in progress. Although there are two editions of twenty cards happening, each card is different in its own way…

four of twenty...

a close up...

I’m hoping to have both editions completed and mailed out sometime next week!

SO: what are you guys working on to celebrate the longer days and nice weather? Perhaps you’re spring cleaning the studio?

Post a comment and let us know what sorts of postal projects you’re currently up to!

–JH

 

 

We interrupt our regularly scheduled program…

…to bring you news of the show “Tables of Content: Ray Johnson & Robert Warner Bob Box Archive” at the Berkeley Art Museum:

a hint of things to come...

Perhaps the sight of multiple missives stacked on top of each makes you swoon? Well, here’s some eye candy for ya! :

my mouth started watering when I noticed that row of envelopes in the back...

...and then I felt a little faint when I looked closer at this stack of wonderful.

The Berkeley Art Museum has done an excellent job of installing the show, working closely with Robert Warner to set everything up “just so”. Each table of correspondence is “open air”, so to speak; nothing rests under glass or inside a vitrine.

...well, maybe a couple of things are under glass...

ohyes they did! neckties mailed to Robert Warner via Ray Johnson.

This show may look familiar to some of you who follow Esopus magazine; issue #16 featured faithful, full scale reproductions of many things which are on display at the BAM. The backstory of the show? In a nutshell: Ray Johnson gave Robert Warner thirteen cardboard boxes when they knew each other in NYC. After Johnson’s death in 1995, Warner went through each box, taking inventory of miscellaneous mail and random objects inside. Every box contained an assortment of objects and a variety of correspondence sent to Johnson over the years.

the 13 boxes, mounted on the wall of the BAM...

Eventually, Esopus magazine became involved and offered to curate a show around the mail art/correspondence/boxes. Esopus published an article/interview with Robert Warner in conjunction with the show and it was a big hit.

ray johnson collages and mailings...

I stopped by the show on opening day (along with other Correspondence Co-op members and John Held Jr.) to listen to Robert Warner speak about the contents of each box, as well as what it was like to know Ray Johnson. The gallery was filled with fifty or so folks, all bewildered and awed by the amount of correspondence sent between these two.

wandering among the riches...

If you’re a fan of Ray Johnson, new to the mail art scene, or looking for inspiration this is a fab show to check out. Personally, I was reminded of how each person’s specific aesthetic comes to the forefront, when sending things through the post. Who’d consider sending a fine-tooth comb through the mail? (wait, don’t answer that…) Or a balsa wood glider? Or a private school logo patch from downtown Detroit? The elements we use and the things that we decide to send to other people are usually the kinds of correspondence we’d like to receive ourselves.

you're invited!

Perhaps the thing that struck me the most about “Tables of Content” had to do with the fact that the artfully arranged items on each table top and the carefully stacked piles of correspondence could have been my bits-and-bobs: projects in progress and things that eventually find their way to someone else, all amassed in a single room that I call my studio. Standing in the gallery at the BAM, it was easy to appreciate that each item and element spoke of a larger picture, a dialogue of sending/receiving, accumulating/sharing.

“Tables of Content: Ray Johnson and Robert Warner Bob Box Archive” runs through May 20th, 2012. More info can be found at the Berkeley Art Museum website. On Friday, April 18th, author Dickran Tashjin (Joseph Cornell: Gifts of Desire, 1992) will give a gallery talk in relation to the show.

–JH

Chicago Flux Fest 2012, part 1…

sending valentines from Chicago O'Hare -- at 5:30 in the morning!

A couple weeks ago, I trekked to the Great Midwest – the city of Chicago to be exact – in order to attend the Chicago Flux Fest. Organized by Picasso Gaglione and Keith Buchholz (a.k.a Dada Machine Fluxus), this four day extravaganza of all things fluxus was a bundle of fun.

commemorative poster made by RLD, for the flux-folk of Chicago...

For those of you curious to know more about fluxus, I suggest taking a look here and here; writers and artists with far more knowledge have already written about the history and timeline of the genre. (although I’ve blogged a bit about it in this previous post.)

delicious!

Landing at 5:30 in the morning, Chicago greeted me with grey overcast skies. I took the train downtown, all the cars empty except for me and my suitcase. Checking into the hotel, I caught a fast disco nap (fell asleep contemplating room service and scrambled eggs…), then made my way over to Columbia College for the “Flux It Yourself” event that was happening in the evening.

everything's better with balloons!

Picasso Gaglione salutes Russian fluxists...

From the moment I walked into the space, it was like being surrounded full of old friends, whether you knew people or not. Performances were in-progress, so there were whispered “hellos” and “how are you?”s and “you made it!” I loved perusing the publications that Cecil Touchon’s Fluxmuseum had brought for everyone to look through, as well as the fluxboxes by Stampland/Dada Machine Fluxus. But the real focus that evening was the performance/event scores.

class portrait, fluxus-style!

The performative aspect is a large component of fluxus; event scores are “essentially performance art scripts consisting of a few lines  of direction, and often describe everyday actions to be performed, rather than dialogue” (via wiki).  One well-known example of an event score is the Dick Higgins piece “Danger Music”, which (so the story goes) got him thrown out of a friend’s dinner party the evening he debuted the piece. Luckily for us, no one got thrown out of the gallery at Columbia – if anything, a curious group of onlookers and students filled the space.

Viv and Mary making books...

Catherine Schwalbe signs her fragments...

My two favorite pieces? Catherine Schwalbe’s “Hommage to Kurt Schwitters” (in which she drops a box solidly on the floor, breaking an entire set of what is “her soon to be ex-mother inlaw’s dishes” — the audience went wild!) and Viv De Dada and Mary Campbell performing the Reuben Sandwich piece “Make 6 Books Out of 5”(it’s exactly what you’re thinking, and the bookbinder in me loved every second of it!)

it's cold and white...what could it be?!?!

After dinner with the group, I walked back to the hotel in the snow (yep, it snowed; see above). I kicked back with a bit of mail art and writing, putting my thoughts together for the next day. Before dropping off to sleep, I managed to find the mailbox in my hotel lobby (well, it wasn’t to be missed, actually), and deposited some missives.

someday, I swear, you'll be mine...

I’ll continue the story of my Chicago adventures on the morrow; photos of mail art, high jinks, and people running around in bowlers will follow, I promise. But for now, I leave you with this video of the evening’s festivities at Columbia College’s Center for Book and Paper (via vivdedada’s youtube channel):

 

 
 

–JH

It’s February 7th, people! One week ’til Valentine’s Day…

the time has come...

Have you seen them? Down every drug store aisle and big box shopping arcade, pink and red and lace-y paper frills are lurking. The greeting card section in my neighborhood stationery store has turned into a riot of heart-shaped cut outs and glitter. Not that it’s a bad thing, mind you…just a bit much, if one is still recuperating from the paper-y pleasures of Christmas.

i miss those hershey's kiss postage stamps...

February 14^th is looming, and last Thursday night, I had no choice but to jump into the deep end of the pool! The Bold Italic was launching issue #2 of their delightful new magazine (Red Letter Day is a featured artist in the article “Let’s Get Physical” — all about being an analog-type of artist here in SF); together with the Noise Pop music festival, they decided to throw a party – and invited Red Letter Day to be part of it!

step right up and pick a postcard, any postcard...

People like making valentines, right?

Yes, yes they do. See below:

my heart is melting...

Party-goers were encouraged to sit down at the table and fill out a postcard to their sweeties. Rubber stamps, colored pencils, and a selection of art supplies were on hand for folks to get their message across…

I couldn't get an -actual- blue box, but maybe someday...

Once folks were finished with creating, I handed over two postage stamps (had to use a “make up” three cent stamp, in addition to the regular postcard stamps…) so everyone could stamp their own cards. A mock mailbox awaited, ready to receive freshly completed postcards!

the new valentine's day zine!

To share the love a bit more, I gave away copies of my newly minted (printed?) zine called “Won’t You Be Mine?” Making handmade valentines, the romance of love letters, a smattering of fun illustrations and you’ve got an idea of what this baby’s all about.

love? check. creativity? absolutely...

“The last time I made a valentine like this was in grade school…” – a common refrain heard throughout the night, as people excitedly sat down at the table to put something together. Nearly everyone spent time looking up an address of some sort on their cellphone; it was unanimously decided that no one remembered anyone’s mailing address anymore.

I’ll confess: before the party started, I had a moment of doubt. “What if nobody’s into the idea of making valentines? What if there’s just a bunch of jaded party people standing around looking at my funny little table, thinking that February 14^th is stupid?” But none of those things happened. San Francisco showed me that it actually loves the love, at least at this time of year. And you know what? It’s one of the things I love about SF.

OMG! does anyone know where i can get those "please wash hands" labels?

So with that being said, I’ll leave you with two things.

A) Here are instructions to an amazing Victorian Puzzle Purse. Book artist Alice Simpson has used this type of folded structure for many of her artist book projects, and demonstrated how to create this gem in the magazine Bound and Lettered (vol 4, #3). My hint for you: work with a square of paper that can easily be divided into thirds (i.e. 6×6 inches, or 9×9). Useful for hiding a tiny Valentine’s Day treat or writing a note to your secret crush!

B) Interested in a copy of “Will You Be Mine?” – if the answer is yes, follow these steps:

–comment below with your name. The first 14 folks to do so will receive zines. (Correspondence Co-op members: you’re already in the loop!)
–email me with your “real mail” address. I can be found at redletterdayzine@gmail.com
–send me a valentine and I bet you’ll get some bonus points!

(edit: 3:36pm –> we’ve hit 14 folks already! The following people should email me (if you haven’t already) with your contact info:

Donovan/Kimberly/Melony B./Marilyn/Emilie Staubbs/Jane Cullen/Melissa Craftgasm/Laurie F/Miss Rose/Martin/Olivia/Yasmine/Megan/Bean

See, that was easy! Now it’s up to you to get to work: red construction paper, a glue stick, and as many heart shaped rubber stamps as you can find. Remember: the most important thing about making a valentine is the sentiment; there are millions of ways to let somebody know how you feel, but I hear that “I love you” is always in style…

Off to find a box of conversation hearts to mail…

–JH

do you suffer from paraskevidekatriaphobia* ?

is this your lucky number?

In case you were unaware, today is Friday the 13th — the first one of the new year! What does that mean? In addition to black cats crossing your path and wishing on four leaf clovers, try to take a minute on your lunch break to toss together a postcard or two. Then, stop by the post office on your way home to drop off the mail, and it will be cancelled with today’s date on it: lucky number 13!

variety is the slice of (college) life...

Now if only there were some well designed, slightly disconcerting postcard stamps to put on these guys…

(are you listening to me, USPS?)

–JH

*: a fear of Friday the 13th

PS: there are two more Friday the 13th dates this year, so you can plan ahead! April 13th and July 13th are next up, in addition to today. And guess what? This year’s friday dates are each thirteen weeks apart from each other — do you think that it’s a mere co-incidence?

PPS: it has also been brought to my attention (by Mark Bloch of PanModern) that Ray Johnson died exactly 17 years ago today; that day was also a Friday the 13th…

Merry Christmas Mr. Mailman!

delivering the mail, in style!

Here’s wishing all of you, dear readers a very merry holiday and a joyous new year! My wish for each of you in 2012? A pleasantly full mailbox, a bevvy of new correspondents, and an endless stream of inspiring mail art.

With a glass of celebratory champagne in one hand, and a sheaf of letters in the other –

–JH

PS: did any of you leave holiday gifties for your postal person, either in your mailbox or in person, at the PO counter? If the answer is “yes”, let us know!

PPS: the above image is for Pamela over at Cappuccino And Art Journal, as I know she collects such fabulousness…