Postcards are back. We inundate our representatives in Washington, D.C., by sending small postcards with pithy messages and a call to action. I've started sending my reps cards from the National Park System as a reminder what great people of other times created when they set aside their personal gains to designate land so that we all could enjoy the natural wonders of the United States.
A group in a recent calligraphy class plan to mail postcards using their calligraphy skills to draw attention to their messages. Just as the Tea Party grew at the beginning of the Obama presidency, opposition to Trump has reawakened a new group of people who are banding together to make sure their voices are heard. One of their first actions has been to flood the hallways of government with postcards. Such a simple, yet powerful, act.
Postcards used to be part of our travels around the country. When we stopped along the way, we picked out favorites, wrote a short message and sent them to friends. I still have boxes of them in my workroom from other people's travels. Sometimes I use them in a mixed media piece; but mostly, I turn them over and re-read the message on the back from a friend.
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| A postcard printed by Lantern Press. www.lanternpress.com They produce beautiful art postcards that can be found at Amazon, Zazzle, and Art.com |
In my Wednesday Writers group, we challenged ourselves to send each other postcards over the summer vacation. I sent cards to my fellow writers and to other friends as well. From this small action several years ago, I came up with the name for my blog, Postcards in the Air.
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| postcards designed by Beth Wheeler & Misako Osada |
I continue to send postcards, not just to my representatives. Recently I've subscribed to online postcard exchange groups and have 'met' some new people across the country.
Jennifer Belthoff, a writer and blogger, leads a group called Love Notes. She says, "Opening our hearts & sharing our stories is the key to connection.We shine brighter when we stand together."
Kat Sloma of Kat Eye Studio offers the Liberate Your Art Swap to encourage you to reproduce your own artwork as a postcard.
Louise Gale coordinates The heART Exchange to encourage self-care, gratitude, and creativity.
You can find these exchanges at these links:
Jennifer Belthoff: www.jenniferbelthoff.com
Kat Eye Studio: http://kateyestudio.com/about-the-kat-eye-studio
The heART Exchange: http://yourheartmakesadifference.com/heart-exchange/
Good places to find quality postcards:
Syracuse Cultural Workers https://www.syracuseculturalworkers.com/
Max & Co. Post http://store.maxandcopost.com (a Lantern Press dealer)
Here are some of the postcards I've received from these groups:
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| by Lynda Fishburne at Smilingbluefish.com |
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| postcards by Chandralynn and Sharon Minchuk |
You can find these exchanges at these links:
Jennifer Belthoff: www.jenniferbelthoff.com
Kat Eye Studio: http://kateyestudio.com/about-the-kat-eye-studio
The heART Exchange: http://yourheartmakesadifference.com/heart-exchange/
Good places to find quality postcards:
Syracuse Cultural Workers https://www.syracuseculturalworkers.com/
Max & Co. Post http://store.maxandcopost.com (a Lantern Press dealer)
I love this idea of sending Nat'l Park postcards to Gov't reps. if you subscribe to Marin woodcut artist Tom Killion's show notice list, you'll get postcards of his beautiful work. I've always wanted to go to his yearly open house on Thanksgiving weekend, in Point Reyes. Haven't made it yet--maybe this year. Hate traveling on that weekend, though.
ReplyDeleteHi Teejay,
DeleteGreat idea about using Tom Killion's postcards too. I love his work. He really shows off California.
I, too, love your postcard ideas and will follow your lead! Sending lovely things that might catch a lawmakers attention makes a lot of sense.
ReplyDeleteThat's what I was thinking. I'm sure they are reacting to the thousands of messages they have been receiving since November.
DeleteThank you for sharing these lovely postcards! I have always been such a fan of postcards and still send them regularly to family and friends when I travel. Your blog reminds me that I don't have to leave town to send something brief and beautiful that can be enjoyed again and again. And what a great idea to send these to our government reps! Art can cut through the hardest of hearts (and heads.)
ReplyDeleteLet's hope that those heads and hearts will take a moment to remember that art and nature are important parts of life.
DeleteMy grandparents put the postcards they received (1898-1915 approx.) in a post card album. The album fell apart so I have them in archival pages. It's such fun to share their lives with Birthday, get well, Easter, Christmas, etc. cards. I've saved postcards folks have sent me for years. Time to get them out and see where I teeorldfriends have wandered.
ReplyDeleteWhat a treasure to have those postcards of your grandparents still. Looking back is supposed to make you more optimistic about your future.
DeleteIf like me you are better with a camera than a brush or a pen try the Touchnote App. It works on Android or iOS. On the spur of the moment on the road I snap a picture and send it off to someone I think would like to see what I am seeing. The quality is very good and the postcards actually arrive in less than a week rather than a month or more. And you don't have to struggle to figure out what postage you need in the particular country you are in. Great!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the suggestion about the Touchtone App. That's a great way to reach someone while you are traveling. Let's them be part of your trip!
DeleteThank you for sharing about mailing postcards. I do just this a lot and I partcpate in Jennifer's Love Notes and Love Notes Fairies. I also send out lots of cards and postcards in Random Acts of Mail FB group. I love sending and receiving mail...the old fashioned way. I always include family and friends in my weekly mailings. Everyone can smile when they receive Happy Mail.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great name -- Createology. I love postcards too. Keep sending them. Good idea to remember to send them to family as well as friends and reps.
DeleteLovely post! I've been collecting postcards since I was a child. Several years ago, I started sending them regularly!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it fun to send them! And even better is to receive a message from someone who was thinking of you on a trip.
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ReplyDeleteI once got a mis-delivered letter from a young immigrant girl in New York to her brother. It somehow got inside a catalog mailed to me in California from Vermont Country Store. She'd done a drawing on it --quite good. Since it had her return address in it, I did a drawing of me and my home and sent her a note, along with her letter. She wrote to me and sent another beautiful drawing. Temporary and accidental pen pals.
ReplyDeleteWhat a delightful experience!. Maybe we ought to start sticking postcards in places where other people will find them! Thank you, teejay, for sharing this story.
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