Thom Courcelle's Blog (204)

Got Gorgeous? Artful Greetings from Greg Diaz of California (USA)

Why am I so tickled by this array of simple forms sent by Greg? A sheet of paper swathed in black, reminiscent of Xuan brush Chinese calligraphy...with two red markings like reflective eyes that turn the form into a smiling creature grinning mirthfully from the shadows.

And, um, that hand-carved Johnson bunny on the envelope…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on November 17, 2023 at 11:15pm — No Comments

Negotiable Notions of Mail Art from Non-Local Variable in Oregon (USA)

I had fun going through the cornucopia of stuff that Non-Local Variable sent in. Much of it meant to question "What is Art?"...

There was also a fascinating boekie/zine enclosed. It looked…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on November 17, 2023 at 9:58pm — 1 Comment

Hijinks and Hilarity from The Haddock of Oregon (USA)

Poetry, DaDa sketches and miniatures...

Thank you!

Added by Thom Courcelle on November 17, 2023 at 9:29pm — No Comments

Rita Does It Right—The Riveting Mail Regards of Rita McNamara

Rita's post came in a hand-painted and designed envelope...soooo beautiful, though it was made of newspaper-thin material, so I didn't dare try to unfold the seams for fear of tearing it... The insides were just as fabulous, though...

A wonderful personal note, and an origami paper box that when…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on November 17, 2023 at 9:19pm — No Comments

Magnificent Magic from MailArt Martha

Musings and stories and artwork galore from MailArt Martha in the United Kingdom! ...Including a legacy stamp portrait through the kindness of Adam Roussopuolos:

Thank you,…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on November 17, 2023 at 9:08pm — No Comments

A Cornucopia of des Cartes Postales from the U.S. States and Abroad

Truly some great, creative, artistic pieces. Some from new friends, some from the familiar crew, and some welcome correspondence from friends not heard from in a while...

Below, from top left, clockwise: Jack of Cascadia Artpost; Coco Muchmore in a fantastic collaboration with artist Nick Carterucci; the Dude-bros of France (Artist In_Seine and Dr. Zack); Michael Orr; Jimmy Connors (Germany); Melissa Wand doing some experimental theater (and photography); and Hélène…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on November 17, 2023 at 8:28pm — No Comments

Mail Art Received from Mikel Untzilla in Euskadi

Mikel sent a very attractive envelope with his signature carved rubber stamps—I love those pastel España Correos postage stamps!—and a sample of the art form spotlighted by one of the newer Theme Groups on this IUOMA site: “The One-Page Zine.”…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on September 27, 2023 at 10:09pm — 5 Comments

Mail Art received from Awyn in Canada

A lucky envelope including an original landscape (“If Trees Could Talk…”) and a bookmark that will get some good use in the near future!

Thank you, Awyn!

I also love the R. Johnson bunny on the envelope holding a message board which seems like a very…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on September 27, 2023 at 10:00pm — No Comments

A Bevy of Beautiful Board — Postcards from Afar and Farther

Hand-made postcards from amazing artists...

(from top left, clockwise...): James Chester's (California) astonishingly beautiful botanical gel plate print; a cut-and-collage geometric "postcard quilt" from Zack in France; Tyler Hannigan's (New Mexico) hand-colored Linocut print "Flight #2"; and Coco Muchmore (Kansas) finds her political voice with a very creative use of rubber stamps…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on August 18, 2023 at 2:00am — 4 Comments

Something's Fishy...from the Netherlands!

Margreet Beemsterboer sends FLUX FISH...I'm glad she used a photo as the subject for her amazing hand-drawn sketches (quite special!) because otherwise it might have been a rather stinky art project!! Below is the original inspiration and the lovely envelope she created:

It has been so wet and rainy (with major flooding) here…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on August 18, 2023 at 1:42am — No Comments

Is Frida Kahlo Stalking Me?? The Secret Mysteries of Mail art from Melissa Wand and the Artist inSeine

Serendipity should never be ignored. Carl Jung had much to say about it. And who am I to argue with the mysteries involved in multiple pieces of mail art being received that presented me with the surrealist and magnificent woman artist FRIDA KAHLO??

Melissa Wand shows me the way through the proverbial rabbit hole (literally) by sending a photo of inter-dimensional portal #0692:…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on August 18, 2023 at 1:26am — 1 Comment

An Array of Aesthetically Appealing Artistry

Postcards received in my mailbox include works by...

(from top):

Jack of Cascadia Artpost

Greg Diaz

David Stanley Aponte of Subreal Alchemy

Zack of…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on March 1, 2023 at 3:11pm — 2 Comments

U.S. Postal Service to Crack Down on "Counterfeit Postage." Are Artistamps at Risk??!!??

This small article appeared in my small hometown newspaper. It was tucked in such a small little space that I could've easily missed it. The notification makes me concerned that the long tradition of Mail Artists creating their own Artistamps may be included in this new "crackdown"—potentially meant to purge mail articles of unnecessary errata. My fear is that the postal system's "unnecessary errata" may be another person's…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on February 23, 2023 at 4:52pm — 8 Comments

Sometimes the Post Office goes a Little Too Far in Assisting with Mail Art

Sometimes you get a whole postcard... and sometimes the post office decides you only get PART of a postcard:

It is *STILL* mightily beautiful in its partial-ness. Achingly colorful and enthralling. Much thanks to Coco Muchmore for this beautiful thing.

I *DO* consider the Post Office a "participant" in Mail…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on January 28, 2023 at 6:31pm — 1 Comment

All-Female CSI Santa Fe Operations Investigate Wormhole Portal in Local Suburban Kitchen

An ominous start to an ominous case was marked on the envelope ...errr, I mean "case file":

The all-female CSI team arrived at the crime scene. Wilemena immediately noticed a deep, dark void under the kitchen tiles sucking all the 1950s ambiance into a post-modernist 87th-dimensional topsy-turvy world.…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on January 23, 2023 at 6:37pm — 2 Comments

I'm RICH!! (...in Lovely Visual Mail Art from the Artist in Seine!)

And this extra large board that came in the mail is extra Zen with Yin-and-Yang support for Ukraine...

The reverse side arrived with some interesting "funny money" dangling out of a used ice cream wrapper! Made me do a double take when it arrived...which I bet it made all the post people delivering it along the way do the same!! The…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on January 23, 2023 at 5:29pm — 1 Comment

Christmas Greetings finally arrive in States from Thessaloniki! (During a New England Snowstorm in January!)

It's looking a lot like Christmas here in Vermont, USA, after a snowstorm last night has dumped more than a foot of snow on us... So, it is only appropriate that a holiday greeting should arrive from Kat in Thessaloniki, Greece just in time! (...for the snow...not for Christmas, that is...)

Here is an accompanying photo of our back deck and…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on January 23, 2023 at 5:01pm — 1 Comment

A Shimmering Beauty from Sue Gnaedinger

A recent handmade postcard from Sue. And alluring design, and her paints SHIMMER in beautiful color on black board...

She's a beauty...Thank you, Sue!

Added by Thom Courcelle on January 23, 2023 at 4:44pm — No Comments

A Quick Diagnosis of Jim's Problem [by David Stafford]

A story in four pictures...…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on April 11, 2022 at 7:31pm — 25 Comments

>>The Act of Resistance Through [Mail]Art<<

There was an article by Elayne Clift in our "Opinions/Perspectives" section of my local newspaper's weekend edition (The Rutland Herald, April 9-11, 2022 edition). This is a VERY small, local newspaper, which none-the-less has won several Pulitzers in its long history (established in 1794). Anyway, Clift's article reflected for me the strong tradition that mail art affords for resistance against political injustices and championing for progressive social justice. And I thought that…

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Added by Thom Courcelle on April 10, 2022 at 9:47pm — 14 Comments

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