*thou shall not sell mail art.* Just to think over
what you are doing exactly and what it means.
I have been posting regularly various postcard
benefits where handmade postcards are sold and the
money given to charity. Mail artists have not been
complaininng about this kind of selling of mail art.
However, Dragonfly has stated clearly that she does
NOT want to sell the mail art.
Very well, but then you have to sell something else.
Why is it OK to sell one kind of art and not another
kind of art. If an artist makes something, and sends
it to Dragonfly, knowing the intention is to sell it,
and share the profit with the artist, why is that
different than anything else she would sell?
Participating in mail art myself has made me think
over some of these questions and I can't say I have
any clear answers. I am not starting a gallery either,
so I am not on the hot wire!
One thing that mail art has taught me, ironically, is
to appreciate selling my work. When I send my mail art
out to anyone, I have no idea if they will want it,
will like it, or what they will do with it. They could
easily destroy it. That limits me on how much time and
effort I am willing to put into a mail art piece,
knowing that whoever gets it, even someone with a
call, even someone I have corresponded with before,
might destroy it. Or alter it in a way that would not
please me. I am not going to mail out an oil painting
in archivial materials that I spent 2000 hours on!!!!
So the trick in mail art is to make something simple
and witty or interesting that doesn't take so many
hours that my heart will break if they throw it out. I
try to make something of QUALITY, but of a certain
level.
However, when someone offers me MONEY for art that I
make, then I know that that persone really WANTS my
art. They are not going to buy my art and then throw
it in the trash. They want my art because they love
the art. And that is the BEST reason for someone to
have my art.
If I were famous, the problem might be that they want
to buy my art for investment purposes, and not because
they love the art. However, I am far from famous, so
that is not my problem.
I don't mean to be giving Dragonfly a hard time as
much as I find these questions interesting. So forgive
me, Dragonfly. But I do hope you find these questions
worth pondering.
What do you think of the museum idea, btw?
- T
--- ma-network@yahoogroups.com wrote:
From: "LaVona Sherarts" [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Sat May 13, 2006 11:33am(PDT)
Subject: Re: mail art gallery?
I agree with Tamara. I wouldn't want to sell my mail
art. It is a contribution to the people in the mail
art world and others, No Judge, no jury. LaVona
--- Tamara Wyndham <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Hello Dragonfly,
> > I trust that you have good intentions.
> > You know of course, there's this tradition of
> art and money don't mix" - and I'm sure others here
> are mor knowledgeable about the original context and
> evolution of that saying.
> > The biggest problem I see, is that mail artists
have
> sent you art for free as a gift, and now you are
> selling it. If you sell it, you could (and should)
> send part of the profit to the artist. But still you
> are changing the nature of the original intention.
> And
> people will start sending you piles of postcards and
> such hoping you will sell it. I imagine that artists
> who would never send their work out for free would
> become interested in sending to your gallery.
> > Another thing is that you will probably notice
that
> some kinds of mail art will sell better than others
> and in order to pay the rent you will be pressured
> to
> favor the kind that sells.
> > Is all this 'wrong"? Perhaps not necessarily, but
it
> makes it something else than the traditional
> not-for-sale mail art show.
> > I believe Ray Johnson's gripe was that he gave his
> mail art for free as a gift and people started to
> sell
> it for lots of $$ when he became famous. However,
> Ray
> did sell his art; and he made art specifically to be
> shown and sold in galleries. I don't think he ever
> sold any mail art, that was seperate. Correct me if
> I
> am wrong, anyone.
> > Another idea I've seen is to open a museum and
> charge
> an admission fee. I haven't seen it with mail art
> yet,
> but I have seen it with other types of quirky
> collections. You'd have to make a great display, not
> only of quality mail art, but how it is arranged and
> lit. Then you'd need to get alot of publicity out in
> your area for locals and tourists to come visit.
> > Good luck!
> > - T
Tamara Wyndham
http://www.tamarawyndham.com
We have convictions only if we have studied nothing thoroughly.
-- E.M. Cioran, The Trouble With Being Born
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