MAIL-ART EXHIBITION: "The Glory of MinXus" featuring Marie Wintzer (Japan), Thom Courcelle (USA), Grigori Antonin (USA), Cheryl Penn (South Africa), Carina Granlund (Finland), Kerri Pullo (USA)

[De Villo Sloan]

From A Line by Marie Wintzer (Saitama, Japan) to be featured in The Glory of MinXus - The first U.S.A. mail-art exhibition of MinXus-Lynxus relics. http://minxuslynxus.wordpress.com/

 

 

May 4, 2012: The first U.S.A. exhibition showcasing international mail-artists who have created work in the spirit of MinXus-Lynxus will take place on and around my refrigerator in my kitchen on Friday, May 11 (2012).

 

The show will open at 11:45 p.m. and close at midnight (exhibition runs for 15 minutes). I wrote and am following this performance score for The Glory of MinXus. New interpretations and performances of this score are encouraged:

 

 

I just received Marie Wintzer's A Line, a ground-breaking visual poetry sequence released by her new Les Editions du Manoir au Visons. A Line will be the ceneterpiece of the exhibit. I have culled through my MinXus-Lynxus collection and found some wonderful treasures for the show to accompany Marie's work Here are some previews of work that will be on display in The Glory of MinXus:

 

Cover of A Line by Marie Wintzer. Surely more editions are to follow.

 

Marie Wintzer uses a split-image structure throughout the series, similar to Thierry Tillier (Belgium),  that focuses the work on the nature of the sign and metaphor:

 

From A Line by Marie Wintzer.

 

This is the back cover that displays the new Les Editions du Manoir aux Visons.

 

 

Many thanks, Empress Marie, for providing the work that inspired the first MinXus exhibition in the United States. Cheryl Penn (South Africa) has documented A Line in its entirety:

http://cherylpenn.com/wpb/?p=1418

 

"Marie's Mailbox" is a notorious hangout for the gifted, scoundrels, and gifted scoundrels:

http://mariesmailbox.blogspot.com/

 

You can also find more at the MinXus-Lynxus blog:

http://minxuslynxus.wordpress.com/

 

 

Thom Courcelle (Seattle, Washington, USA)

 

Thom Courcelle sent me this beautiful knitted piece that has never been posted before - really extraordinary. Thom has done work that can be identified as MinXus, and this knit piece in particular is an ideal selection to showcase his talents in The Glory of MinXus. This one has a special meaning for me due to its visual poetry and literary reference. First note the vowels:

 

 

Thom sent a wonderful, minature envelope providing the connection to Arthur Rimbaud's sonnet that uses synaesthesia to mix color and language. I have written about this Rimbaud poem before and contend it should be considered as literature that anticipates the emergence of visual poetry. By coincidence, I am writing about it again in the introduction to the second edition of the collaborative visual poetry book.

 

 

A MinXus-Lynxus treasure, indeed. Thank you for this wonderful work, Thom, and for your ongoing friendship. It has been great getting to know you.

 

 

Grigori Antonin (Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA)

 

I am including several older pieces (now mainly of historic value) by Grigori Antonin in The Glory of MinXus exhibition. You will find in the various charts and diagrams, Grigori is given credit for having an important role in the establishment of MinXus-Lynxus. No overview would be complete without a nod to Antonin, longtime crony of Marie Antonette. Thus he sits at the great banquet table of MinXus:

 

"Sloanism" (2010). Proto-MinXus mail-art by Grigori Antonin.

 

Here is another Grigori Antonin classic that has had a powerful impact on the rise of MinXus:

 

"NOW Jen!" (2010). Proto-MinXus mail-art by Grigori Antonin

 

Grigori Antonin has an excellent mail-art blog. Of particular note, he is gathering material for a show honoring John Cage. Some great material is coming in, which you can see on the blog. And maybe you are someone who is interested in contributing because Cage certainly is a figure who has a special place in mail-art history:

http://grigori-nojohnrays.blogspot.com/

 

Cheryl Penn (Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa)

 

Cheryl Penn is an incredibly talented artist and visual poet who has had a huge infuence on MinXus-Lynxus in many ways. She certainly is responsible for launching the New Wave of artist's books that is a trademark of the movement.

 

For The Glory of MinXus exhibition, I am displaying a book I received from Cheryl during the Spring of 2011. Again, I do not believe the piece has been posted before. Here are some excerpts:

 

Cover of artist's book by Cheryl Penn 2011.

 

The book has intricate folds that allow for the possibility of many different relations among the pages and thus multiple perspectives and interpretations.

 

 

Cheryl Penn created a number of books in 2011 that explored the nature of language, its fate, and language/image relations. Many of these pieces are haptic and use organic form.

 

Excerpt from artist's book by Cheryl Penn (2011)

 

In  addition to the tones and textures of this book, I like the inclusion of poems.

 

 

The overlays, tones, and textures in this book are fantast, IMHO.

 

 

I am thrilled to be able to share this Lost Classic by Cheryl Penn in The Glory of MinXus exhibition. To see more work by Cheryl and others, make sure to visit

http://cherylpenn.com/wpb/

 

 

Dark wall (Auburn, New York, USA)

 

Dark wall has contributed his latest asemic music record on his MINX mUSic label:

 

Asemic music by Dark wall. A side: "Minks of Fire" (2012)

 

Yip, that's Elvis.

 

 Asemic music by Dark wall. B-side of "Minks of Fire": "D) Is Appearing M)Ink"

 

 

Carina Granlund (Petsmo, Finland)

 

Carina Granlund has made a stunning debut in the Eternal Network. I immediately noticed the MinXus tendencies in her work. She has responded with warmth and interest, although clearly, she does much work beyond the scope of MinXus.

 

I certainly am enjoying having her as a friend. Recently she sent work to Marie Wintzer that made a sensation as the first piece of Finnish Holism ever created. I received this wonderful work that will have a prominent place in The Glory of MinXus exhibition:

 

 "Illusions" by Carina Granlund (2012)

 

What makes Carina's art Natural Born MinXus? Certainly it is the subtle yet highly refined aesthetics, organic qualities, and the text-image interweaving.  

 

 

Many thanks, Carina! I hope we continue to exchange work. Carina has a great blog:

http://www.carinagranlund.com/

 

 

Kerri Pullo (Tucson, Arizona, USA)

 

Kerri Pullo is an excellent correspondent who sent me three beautiful postcard-size pieces recently. She is a wonderful visual artist; I love her use of colors and textures. She also is an asemic writer with a refined and completely distinctive style. Kerri's work definitely reflects the spirit of MinXus, and her work greatly enhances The Glory of MinXus:

 

 

I really like the yellow-drip symbols (above, right). Kerri included a note and there is interesting text on the back of the cards:

 

 

She provides a link to the interesting Mail-Art 365 project on her profile page:

 

http://mailart365.blogspot.com/search/label/kerri%20pullo

 

Many thanks to all who contributed to The Glory of MinXus.

 

 

[Carina]

Wow, DVS, love the concept, but my refrigerator is hidden inside a cabinet (was very pop 10 years ago in Finland), perhaps inside the fridge, well, not so convient! My MinXus collection is small but strong, I'll find a way..

Thanks for a inspiring blog!

[De Villo Sloan]

Ruud Janssen did an interview with Blaster Al Ackerman that I think is an absolute classic. It covers Neo, life in the mail-art network, and much more:

http://jas.faximum.com/library/tam/tam_70.htm

[De Villo Sloan]

Hi Cheryl, Post-Neo Adsurdism is yet more coinage from Jim Leftwich, the same person who brought us Trashpo. Neo, Post-Neo, Anti-Neo, etc. were movements closely aligned to mail-art of, oh, spanning probably three decades with all the iterations.

 

JMB's associate Blaster Al seems to have had a heavy hand in founding Neo. Cecil Touchon is heavily involved. I thin he has published a Post-Neo Manifesto. Neo is a weird amalgam of postmodernism, Fluxus, etc. When dealing with invented movements in the arts, the invention of people who might or might not really exists, and events that never happened, seems only fair to give some winx to Neo.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoism

[cheryl penn]

I have a refrigerator (fridge), that means I could have an exhibition. Why not?  Post-Neo-Absurdism - are you taking full ownership of that one? I'd like to make application to use it when necessary? Yes, this is an official request. 

[De Villo Sloan]

Po bags for freezer art exhibitions

[De Villo Sloan]

Kitchen art exhibition

[De Villo Sloan]

"Please remain on the line. We appreciate your impotent message."

[Marie Wintzer]

fridge maggots?

- If your symbol’s a rodent your art movement’s impotent - Grigori Antonin

[De Villo Sloan]

Definitely DK, the refrigerator in most homes (US anyway) is the domestic art gallery, the domain of real & living culture in life as posed to synthetic culture in the museums & galleries. So the show is a tribute to the kitchen & fridge too. I like "mgents" the best. Seriously, see Dr. Benway.

 

Marie, this might not help quell the rumor that MinXus is fridge-Id, I mean rigid.

[DKeys]

of course I men t to say maggots