RECEIVED: U.S. Mail-Art Compilation from Kerri Pullo (Arizona), Skybridge Studios (Indiana), Nancy Bell Scott (Maine)

[De Villo Sloan]

Mail-art by IUOMA member Kerri Pullo (Tucson, Arizona, USA)

 

November 11, 2011 - Scans of Kerri Pullo's work I have seen in the IUOMA gallery reveal her talent for collage, a subtle and deeply refined sense of color and texture, an interest in the interplay between text and image, and a tendency toward conceptual art.

 

The first mail-art she sent me (above) is a relatively large (5 x 9 inches) piece that emphasizes asemics. I recognize this approach from the Asemics 16 collaborative book project. Mim Golub Scalin (Virginia, USA) used it notably. Symbols and shapes are cut-up, thus fragmented, to create the asemics. As a background, Kerri Pullo uses her wonderful textures to enhance the work and further meld language and image.  The reverse side is equally stunning:

 

Mail-art by Kerri Pullo 

 

All the elements mentioned above are present in this piece, but they produce a very different result. Running your fingers over it, these asemics feel as if they had been painted on fabric. Yet visually, to me anyway, the grey-blue sections look like prehistoric symbols inscribed on stone, a petroglyph.

 

As Asemics 16 also revealed, many writers and artists who create asemics invoke the archaic, as if seeking to return to the primal roots of writing. Kerri Pullo certainly manages to restore the mystery, magic, and wonder that most of us lose in the the daily inundation of signs and their systems. The work came in a beautiful, painted, green envelope: 

 

 

And the reverse, giving us a marker in time:

 

 

Marie Wintzer's (Japan) recent forays into visual poetry and her admiration for Les Brumes as well as Cheryl Penn's (South Africa) recent semiotic excesses have led to the establishment of The Arthur Rimbaud Symbolist School of Subtle Aesthetic Obscurity. This school certainly has many positive qualities. Kerri Pullo's art supports this contention. I am absolutely thrilled to have received her mail-art and look forward to more exchanges. She has an excellent blog where you can see more of her work:

 

http://annetrixiemona.posterous.com/

 

One great thing about mail-art is that on any given day you can receive a masterpiece for the ages or just a great message from a friend who is thinking about you. The next piece is the latter.

 

Before Asemics 16 was ever conceived, I considered Skybridge Studios a friend and admired her art. Having gone through the project with her, I developed a respect on a new level. Her chapters and her service on the Asemic High Council as well as her incredible research ability - well, she is an amazing person.

 

Recently Skybridge Studios sent me a great vintage card. I could take the low road and describe it as Kinky mail-art, but I won't. NOTE TO SPELL CHICK: Please delete the previous sentence. Here is the postcard's front:

 

Mail-art by Skybridge Studios (North Manchester, Indiana, USA)

 

Wow, those guys are the Kinks? Skybridge knows (thinks) I am a Kinks fan. I used to listen to a great version of "Sunny Afternoon" she had linked on her blog. For all the Punk Mail-Art folks: The punk rockers in the U.S. adored the Kinks during a time when it was not d-kool to like anything that had a connection to dinosaur rock.

 

What appears to be my admiration for the Kinks is actually ambivalence. Back in the days of Beatnik Glory, a love-of-my-life girlfriend was an adoring fan of Ray Davies. As if a gift from heaven, Ray appeared in a local record store to autograph albums and generally mix with the public. So said (ex-) girlfriend went to meet him. There was a terrible indiscretion between the two of them in the store - for the world to see, so to speak - that resulted in my total humiliation. I know Ray reads my blog regularly, so I just want to say: "No hard feelings, Ray. That was long ago and far away." Anyway, here's the reverse side:

 

 

So even if on a bad day thinking about the Kinks might still rip my guts apart, I appreciate this great card from Skybridge.

 

Skybridge has been steadily upgrading her blog, and it is becoming an impressive hub for much good work, definitely worth a look (The Kinks link is gone):

http://skybridgestudios.blogspot.com/

 

Nancy Bell Scott's art incorporates many mail-art movements. She creates tremendous asemics and has embraced Trashpo and the D-Kult. Some might go so far as to see Trashpo as standing in theoretical opposition to asemics and visual poetry, especially if one focuses on the core issue of found art. Nancy Scott Bell disproves this with her work that provides a synthesis of many concepts. Here is the front of recent mail-art she sent me:

 

Mail-art by IUOMA member Nancy Bell Scott (Old Orchard Beach, Maine, USA)

 

This is a panel of a fabric and cardboard, commercially produced book cover, bearing the emblems of years of use (and abuse). Stains or some sort of mistreatment have formed lines. Apparently someone used the book as a coaster, and it left light circles.

 

Applying Trashpo concepts, Nancy has identified found asemic structures. This is a tremendous gift of the artist, to find wonder in the mundane world and to share the wonder with me, the lucky recipient. Certainly, this is asemic Trashpo. In her work to better integrate the tribes, Nancy Bell Scott has also done some fantastic work with aesthetic Trashpo. Here is the reverse side:

 

Thank you, Nancy. I love this piece. What a great concept! Nancy Bell Scott has a fantastic blog where you can see more of her work:

http://nancybellscott.wordpress.com/

 

And thanks again to Kerri Pullo, Skybridge Studios, and Nancy Bell Scott for this mail-art!

 

MAIL-ART PSYCHIC

 

Don't bother opening it: It's a polaroid from Grigori Antonin.

 

Your imagination is in overdrive. Tap into the purple spots.

 

Evils is just Elvis with the letters moved around.

 

Whino.

 

Pigpen.

[De Villo Sloan]

CP-SA - who is Kirri Krishna? The artist's name is Kerri Pullo.

[cheryl penn]

uuummm - make that ZALOP!

[cheryl penn]

Believe me, no comment on The School does not mean my mind is not furiously engaged in semiotic excesses - as usual! HiJack 2 while I think of an appropriately complex retort :-) From Kirri - thanks VERY much - I will put it in the ZALO project, but will just take advantage of dvs while I can :-))) XX

 

[De Villo Sloan]

However, I'm disappointed. No response to the little section on the Arthur Rimbaud Symbolist School of Subtle Aesthetic Obscurity or the comment about Cheryl's "recent semiotic excesses." 

[De Villo Sloan]

It's OK to be back on the chain gang as long as it's with the usual suspects and hi-jackers. The Mail-Art Psychic also said: "It is better to blog the work of others than issue manifestos."

 

Karen - a joy to "see" you. Kerri's work also reminds me of KC's pieces, especially the artifact. Who knows if there is influence there or not? Karen's asemic talismans are certainly original with that added dimension of being haptic or object poetry.

 

Cheryl - "out of the blue" is appropriate phrasing indeed. I am glad you posted a different example of Skybridge/Lisa's work. The card is atypical but was an opportunity to continue my lifelong quarrel with Ray Davies.

 

Marie - just, you know, try to stay out of the fortune-telling business. Leave it to a pro like the M.A.P.

[cheryl penn]

Hi-Jack One - Lisa's FAB Making Tracks - I LOVE it Lisa - thanks very much :-) X

[cheryl penn]

Great Blog DVS - an excellent read as usual. And three great pieces.  I received my first piece from Kirri out the blue - it certainly has wonderful textures. I think I'm going to put in a personal request to the resident psychic for serendipitous postings by you , as Hi-Jacking your blogs is a favorite past time of mine - and you've been bloggingly absent :-) XX  

[Karen Champlin]

A trio of great pieces.  Thank you DVS!