"Mail Art" is hard to define as one thing because every mail artist would give you a different definition. Essentially, it's a big international network of people who exchange artwork and ideas via the postal service. Mail art in simplest terms is one person sending another person something that they have created. In more complex terms, there are mail art shows where hundreds of people send in work according to a specific theme. All of the work that is sent in is displayed in some manner and everyone who participates gets "documentation"--a list of all the artists, and possibly a catalog of the artwork. Announcements for these shows are distributed within the network (often to people who have participated in past shows), and not from any central location. It is democratic art at its best. Pop artist Ray Johnson is considered the originator of the network- in the 1950's he shunned the gallery-dealer-museum system of conventional art and started sending his artwork to people for free, often for no apparent reason. Sometimes he would prompt the recipients to change the piece in some way and pass it on to a third person, setting in motion a chain of contact which continues to this day. Ray Johnson committed suicide in 1995, but some of the pieces which Ray originated are still in circulation. Mail art seeks to break down the division between audience and artist-- anyone can be a mail artist, and have their work shown in a mail art show, regardless of academic credentials or technical skill- all you need is a stamp.
I was deeply saddened by the following news that Marilyn Dammann, also known as Shadow, had died in 2005. Marilyn was one of my favorite correspondents, and an amazing human being. The world will surely miss her creativity, humor and art. I always eagerly anticipated opening one of her beautiful envelopes and reading her delicate handwritten letters, along with her rubbings, photographs of the earthworks, and drawings she created.
-Ken Miller
A message from Guido Vermeulen
Dear Friends, Chers ami(e)s,English message followed by French one:
Dear Mail artists,
I have the very painful news to tell all of you:
Marilyn Dammann (also known as Shadow in the network) died on Sunday afternoon, May 22, 2005.
She had spread a message she'd retired from mail art activities. The truth behind this message was that she was dying of a general cancer. Only a few people knew this and kept this a secret like she wished. She made a last trip with her children and grand children. Her beautiful house and garden in the UP that I visited twice will become a community arts gallery in her honor.
I'm very shocked and in deep mourning. The mail art network has lost one of its finest members. I've lost a very good friend.
Let's all remember her in thoughts and art.
Chers ami(e)s du reseau d'art postal,
C'est avec regret et chagrin que je vous annonce le deces de Marilyn Dammann qui etait aussi connu sous le nom de SHADOW (Ombre). Elle vient de mourir dimanche le 22 mai dans l'apres-midi.
Elle avait diffuse le message dans le reseau qu'elle prenait sa retraite de l'art postal. La verite derriere ce message etait qu'elle luttait contre un cancer
Seulement quelques personnes intimes le savaient en ont tenu le secret sur sa condition sur sa propre demande. On s'est telephone il y a quelques semaines pour dire nos adieux. Elle a encore fait un voyage d'une semaine a travers l'Amerique ensemble avec ses enfants et petits-enfants. Sa maison et jardin au Michigan vont devenir une gallerie d'art communautaire en son honneur.
Profondement attriste par sa mort j'invite les artistes du monde entier de lui rendre hommage en pensees et par la creation artistique. Le reseau d'art postal vient de perdre un de ses partisans le plus chere. Je viens de perdre une de mes meilleures amies.
Marilyn, je t'embrasse tres fort la ou tu es, dans l'ombre de l'ombre.
Postal Greetings,
The friends and family of Marilyn Dammann are planning 2 activities as a tribute to Shadow:
June 3 will be the opening of a tribute exhibition. This was already prepared and everyone hoped Marilyn would be present at the opening. Her sudden death on May 22 makes that her presence will be a spiritual one. June 26 will be a memorial day: friends and family will come together, drink a special wine that Marilyn made for this occasion (she was an excellent wine maker and prepared even a batch to drink to celebrate her life) and will walk in the woods to visit and alter some of Marilyn's earth sculptures. Marilyn loved making art with what she found in nature and she always invited visitors to alter these pieces that were already in a continuous process of change and transformation because of time and the natural elements. She called these actions "walking the pilgrimage path" Family and friends invited me to be present that day and participate but I cannot afford traveling for the moment. But this gave me the force and the inspiration to present this idea to the whole of the network:
Let's turn June 26 into an international memory day for Marilyn Dammann. Let's all honor Shadow by creating art the 26th, doing a performance, write a poem, do a nature walk, choose the expression you're most happy with ... Let's celebrate her life with joy, with love, light and magic; like she always did!
I propose also you document (with text, images, photos, reports) what you do in the corner of your globe and mail me these. I'll unite all tributes and dispatch them as a whole to her close friends and family members in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and spread them again in the mail art network as a tribute of the mail art network to one of its members.
So send your June 26 tributes for Shadow to:
Guido Vermeulen, Vincottestreet 81, B-1030 Brussels - BELGIUM
Email: guido.vermeulen@easynet.be
Les ami(e)s et la famille de Marilyn Dammann preparent deux activites en son honneur: Juin 3 sera l'ouverture d'une expo en son hommage. Sa morte soudaine fait que sa presence sera spirituelle. Juin 26 sera une journee de memoire et une celebration de sa vie. Ami(e)s et famille se reuniront pour boire un vin a sa sante qu'elle a fabriquee elle-meme pour cette occasion.
Ils se promeneront dans les bois en visitant les sculptures que Marilyn faisait avec le debris de la nature. Ils ajouterons et modifions les sculptures, une chose que Marilyn proposait a tous ces visiteurs. On m'a invite a cette journee mais le manque d'argent m'empeche de faire un nouveau voyage aux USA. C'est alors que l'idee m'est venue pourquoi pas tourner Juin 26 dans une journee internationale a sa memoire! Creons quelque chose ce jour la en son honneur, faisons une performance, une promenade dans la nature, un poeme, n'importe quelle expression, choisissez celle qui vous convient le mieux. Documentez ce que vous faites le 26/06 et envoyez-moi les resultats. J'unifie l'ensemble et j'enverrai les hommages du monde entier a sa famille et ami(e)s la-bas. Envoyez vos actions du 26 a mon adresse a Bruxelles SVP
Postal Greetings,
Guido Vermeulen
