Mail Art Archive

[Mim Golub Scalin]

I'm so excited! I contacted the Special Collections librarian at the university library where I used to teach. I invited her to come to our home and look at my Mail Art archive. I spent days and days sorting and organizing. I couldn't believe how tired I would get and how long it was taking. I loved seeing all the mail again. Old memories, remembering when I got pieces. My oldest is 2004. I was a late comer to Mail Art, having had a different art path. I'd always written notes and postcards and decorated them but never knew about Mail Art as a thing. In 2000, when I went  back to teaching in an art program, I was searching around for my voice again. My son recommended a postcard exchange site, PostcardX, and this was kind of early time with internet communities. Well, what fun. And in that community, I learned about Artist Trading Cards and Mail Art. And lucky me, later on, maybe in 2010 or 11 or 12, I got to meet the man who started Artist Trading Cards (M. Vançi Stirnemann.) I digressed. - What happened is the librarian was surprised that Mail Art was still happening. She knew about it because the library has 18 boxes of files from the estate of Davi Det Hompson, who was a friend of ours. I told her about IUOMA, about how many members we have, about the other Social Media groups (on Facebook, etc.) She was amazed, and she was amazed by the interesting mail that I had to show her. She took my two boxes, a bankers box and a smaller box with her. She loved it. I'll be giving her more as time goes on. The library will sort and catalogue by Artist's Name. They'll digitized all the work. They will also be asking me to get permissions, so I'll be doing some future work, for sure, contacting everyone. If you've sent me work over the years, YOU are in the collection. Whether it's one piece or many, you'll be in the collection. I can't tell you how super excited I am to have all of us archived for posterity. Even my work is in it as a friend of mine had sent me back a lot of the work I'd sent her, which as first kind of freaked me out, but now I'm glad, because it's in the collection. Excited, happily excited, thrilled and delighted! YAY! The Special Collections of Virginia Commonwealth University Library. Now I don't have to worry about what will happen to all of this wonderful mail that I've received. I was thinking I'd be willing it to my offspring! Now, it has a permanent place in history. And if someday there is no postal system, horrible thought, there'll be proof that there was one. So there. Thanks to everyone who sent me Mail Art!

[Debra Mulnick]

Strong work!  Thanks for collaborating with a librarian!  Librarians rock.

[William M]

Thanks Mim, hopefully one day they'll digitize. It'd be nice to see a list of places where different mail art archives in special collections has been digitized. I know Oberlin(I think it was Oberlin) has a nice selection to peruse. But some places, on the times I've looked, just seem to be a list of contents with no pictures.

[Mim Golub Scalin]

In response to William M's comment. I searched and found that our friend Davi Det Hompson's archives were donated before the possibility of digitizing. I did see familiar names in the files, besides Anna Banana there was John Held, Jr. and John Bennett. I"m sure there are more if I look more carefully but honestly I was so 'whelmed by emotion seeing the scope of David's involvement. I had no idea. You can go to Virginia Commonwealth University Library then special collections then Davi Det Hompson if you are interested. Maybe this link will work - http://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaxtf/view?docId=vcu-cab/vircu00064.xml

[Carmela Rizzuto]

WOW, Mim!--you found a home for your mail art. How wonderful is that! Yes, it is good to know that future generations will be able to peruse the wonders of mail art. Thanks for taking the time to organize it. I sent an entry for your Bicycle Race Call for Entries. You have my permission to donate to the Special Collections of the Virginia Commonwealth University library. the image is below.

[William M]

this is great. has the other mail art already in their special collections been digitized and is it available to the general public to peruse?

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

I spy "Thess" stamped mail art in your collection, Mim,

and yes indeedy you have my permission .What an excellent archive it will be.

Special thanks to the librarian and the Virginia Commonwealth University!