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Dear Colleagues:
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How does one catalog 'mail art'? Mail art is a form of dadaism (?--I'm not
real good at schools of art) that involves using found materials to make a
piece of art and then sending this art object through the mail. Sometimes
the process of mailing, such as using stamps and postmarks, are a part of
the art. It is a non-commercial art form in which randomness plays a big
part. I think the idea is that the receiver makes a (or many) collage(s) of
the material enclosed....and forwards the unwanted material to someone else.
Much of [my] collection is envelopes full of objects that are not arranged.
The problem I'm having is imagining the research projects that might be done
with the collection. Will people want to study individual artists, in which
case putting it in order of artist might be useful? Does the phenomenon have
sub-schools which should be sorted out? Since randomness seems to be part of
the aesthetic, does giving it an order ruin it?
Any thoughts? Are there any other collections of this stuff anywhere?
--Billie
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