Really all im trying to do is {simply} combine post & poetry into mystery & kindness. That’s enough.
Here are some “Items, Forgotten” series (there are several volumes of this series constructed all over the world, quite literally) and nicks cut and paste poetry on various substrates usually with some sort of postal origin.
As it goes, in April 2023, I dropped a Mail Art collage (with theme of pandemic-ness) into the mail *juuuusssttt* as we were heading to the airport to take my first trip back to Canada for a long time (as well as taking my wife and son to meet their relatives and pals).
As much as i can figure, the exhibit was put on by Kollaj magazine and PaperPost Boise for an exhibit at Boise State University, ergo:
“Paper+ Post is an international open call for mail art with collage as the theme. Postcard-sized mail art will be presented in an exhibition at Boise State University titled,Paper +Post.
This exhibition will feature collage and mixed media works highlighting current worldwide trends in collage. We are asking participants to respond to life during the pandemic these past three years. We welcome participants to ponder the question,“How has living with the pandemic for the past three years changed your life?”
Upon conclusion of the exhibition, artwork will be preserved in Boise State’s SpecialCollections and Archives at Albertsons Library.Paper + Post’s open call for collage-themed mail art is being held in conjunction with World Collage Day, an annual, international celebration of collage.”
Paper Post Boise (dropbox file)
Made a few variations of scans quickly using flatbed scanner and an overhead laser scanner with very different colour results / collecting here as well as showing the envelope’s enclosures “opened up” and other hidden gems. Which variation do you prefer? It’s up to you, not me after all.
One of the curators found a common experience about the fable Yak & Yeti Hotel where i stayed with Cmdr Magnum,
“It’s perfect and so interesting. There’s a tiny bit on there that says Yak & Yeti (a very nice hotel in Kathmandu). It reminded me of a trip I was on, after crossing overland, camping between Lhasa Tibet on our way to Kathmandu, we stayed there! I’ve never checked into a hotel as dusty & filthy dirty as I was that day. And despite that, they served us some kind of welcome drink in the lobby right then. We were astonished and so grateful to have made it there.”
I replied: “it’s truly an historic hotel… As a kid growing up in Canada reading accounts of Himalayan expeditions in a canvas tent in our suburban backyard, I remembered expeditions using that as the first checkpoint in the last checkpoint on their trips… As it goes, I checked in there on the night before Nepali New Year’s Eve and it was a packed with a variety of clientele from expeditions with huge carts filled with climbing gear to distinguished local elites coming for festivities. was only there for one night and where am I “best outfit” a custom hemp clothes made in Pokhara (where my fictional aerogramme comes from) and a topi hat… Then I moved over to a six dollar a night flophouse in the Thamel district, and my freshly polished boots became filthy in the muddy streets and I went back to my usual “dusty dirty” mode as I hopped on a plane to Abu Dhabi filled with young Nepali fella with their travel scarves heading off to do dangerous challenging jobs (for low pay). Thanks so much for sharing your memories. If you have anything written or documented, please share with me.”
Other artifacts include: receipt from Sabriti Hemp Shop and vibes from my time at Ayurveda Health Home which i used as a context yet set in 1975 (Aug 1st as was the postal cancellation). Various stamps – wood/ink and postal – plus trekking permits, and a combination of typewriter (Olivetti Lettera 34) and fountain pen. Continued the conceit the aerogramme was refused for enclosures and thus lost in dead letter piles. Did Thor’s letter ever find Ms. Heda?
The exhibit happened while I was off on the ramble, and so kind missed it in real life, but there is a IG video and if you look closely, you can catch my piece. I guess now goes into a special collection. Not quite sure what that means but its fun (especially considering how infrequently I *actually* send something out for display rather than just “sending something out”)
As it goes, I’ve always made these kind of travel ephemera collages but just now realizing that other people enjoy this kind of stuff :-) I guess I’m a slow learner.
I’m going to pretend I’m a boxer who took a few hits in my right eye but really it’s some kind of weird eye infection or something… I don’t know anyway ~ I probably shouldn’t post this but took a photo to see how eye looked (because I don’t have a mirror here in bed)
Was from the house to the ophthalmologist, checking in, inspection, correction, prescription, filled and home in 42 minutes…
Pretty much back to normal now whatever that is. Or maybe I should take one more photo?
Yep infection, eyedrops in, changed all the pillows sheets and towels. Keeping it covered with tissue as well. Big day at the hospital tomorrow so hopefully will have some improvement tonight
Because I over document all the tiny incidents of my life, and have far too much time spent in bed with a chronic and complex illness… It means, I made a collage of my eye infection over this last week. It’s getting better, grateful for a great medical system here in Japan, eyes are very delicate (I’ve spent enough on ophthalmologists and optometrists and opticians to pay for orthodontists for their children and possibly a boat for their retirement) but super glad for good medical care (oh, did I say that already?)
I’m not sure why I’m sharing this but why do I do any of this.
Anyhow, take care of your peepers (and dig my sweet track suits and pajamas)
PS for historical record. Also noting that face recognition on my phone robot doesn’t work with this Popeye look
After a pleasant coffee conversation with a pal in ATX, i headed to the kura barn studio to practice a poem reading for Muriel’s Journey at Word Vancouver (which i recorded) and took a few snaps of some things that my pal (and prob you, since you are also a pal right?) might enjoy, while also making mixed cassettes (from a USB drive) and packing burned CDs (in recycled envelopes).
As it goes, looks a little computery in here but i keep it all pretty analog and purposely keep it “internet-free” zone. Shuttle creations back and forth to “basecamp” with various sneaker-net schemes.
Update:
Making mixed cassettes and burning CDs with a “DaveO variety show” of audio collages, postcard soundscapes, spoken songs, stories, and songs down in collaboration with fine musician pals. 
Typing up the tracklist/liner notes, sprucing up with inky stamps, making mailers from card stock & washi tape.
Four into the postal wormhole yesterday, couple more ready today.
Who still has a cassette deck and/or “regular” CD player?
Note: Recently dug out a “ruggedized” Olympus camera from wife’s stash, found a cord and a memory chip and put it back into service >> Lots of onboard effects and variations in settings and importantly allows me to go out and document life without my fully functional pocket robot of distractions.
Catching up on my/our miraculous life, yonder back in December 2021 amidst preparation for Christmas and a few of their ongoing projects, we went to see an exhibit of one of our favourite artists, Noriko Miyake who is just about to head out for creative sojourn in Paris.
We have a couple of her paintings [see: Diary: New Goddess Art from Miyake Noriko, Diary: Get on the Omnibus (annotations from the fog)] and have flowed a couple out to the world as gifts as well, she’s always doing something interesting, often involving p3nis and vag!nas and related whatnot (pardons keeping this post safe for search).
The exhibit was in a great coffee shop in which was on board with placemats, menus, table flags and other treats to make the exhibit completely immersive. There was even art hanging in the toilet (yup, we purchased one, a wild collage) and in the hallways (yup bought one from there as well, a sort of jellyfish kite).
Then, you climb a very steep dangerous staircase (watch your head! gonk!) and head into a room FILLED with painted, stuffed and sewn vulvas, yup! Cozy up and lounge in the splendor. We all enjoyed and have one at home now.
Blurb: In the historic kura barn studio in provincial Japan, digging into the archive from 1996/7 documentary film “HempenRoad”, Uncle Weed shares the backstories of the project with a binder full of artifacts, reviews, plans, scripts, etc
Then plays a “producer’s cut” of a segment from Olympia, Washington featured Dennis Peron on the road promoting ground-breaking California Prop 215 at the Capitol Dome – along with diligent activists out the rain and Lt Governor candidate Bob Owen of WHEN.
Next a visit to a pioneering Internet Service Provider (OlyWa) for a peek at a (now vintage) data center with modems(!) and remarks about the importance of the (new) word wide web for disseminating information about cannabis.
Finally, riffs about how the film was produced with analog and digital tools, the importance of “showing up” and working with all parties to effectuate positive change and a personal manifesto of sorts about UW’s objectives and edicts when becoming a dedicated activist in 1990.
Questions welcome about the film – segments from Vancouver, Victoria, Portland, Eugene and more to come – as well as logistical inquiries about making creative projects.
Gist: I’m collaborating with some pals on a new Cannabis Community project – its all metavers-y and NFTs and such as and while that’s not my forte, sharing stories from rambles, campaigns, and creative riffs is (fer sure) so here’s the firestarter video to spark the project series. Links below to get in on the hi-jinks. So happy to be getting studio barn set-up with all the wires, dongles, adapters, extenders, lights and mics. Catch all the topics in the riff below and come on along!
Join in the hijinks at the #uncle-weed-storytime on the Cannaverse Club discord server and/or https://Cannaverseclub.com & Cannaverse Club Youtube
#AlwaysBeKind
There are many reasons I love to send postcards and letters: the first of course is to just let people know I am thinking about them, followed closely by the meditative enjoyment of assembling paper, image and decoration just exactly right, but also enjoy seeing my creations reflected back across in another medium, weeks – or sometimes months – after I drop it in the box.
In this case, the recipient is a photographer who primarily shoots humming and other birds (and who’s lovely cards are elsewhere in this archive) and also takes wonderful close-up snaps of the details of my artifacts, in this case noticing the stamps – both ornamental and philadelphic – and the fuchsia ink scrawled with a quill.
To continue the recursive cycle, I’ve smashed four of her photos together in a little collage to zoom back from Japan to Vancouver once again, with evidence.
Continue reading Post’d: inky card with details & musingsErgo: A collage of close up details from a postcard sent from provincial Japan to West End Vancouver showing a beautiful franked stamp featuring illustration of a lady in kimono, an ink stamp unofficially commemorating Vancouver international airport established 1970, another ink stamp imitating an Immigration stamp from Narita airport and excerpt of a scribble in fuchsia ink possibly saying “happy birthday“ with a bit of another ink stamp probably saying “Postcard“.
Observed in a community centre exhibit on an outing to Kojima, Okayama, Japan. Kojima is the “denim capital” of Japan and the Okayama area is also noted from producing the ubiquitous school uniforms worn around Japan. This exhibit was an homage of sorts.
Painting, Letter writing, Collage, Podcasting, all at once. Totally usual behaviour right?
Stories are stories – the important this is to create and then share (if’n ya want).
Be your own master of all crafts/media.
