Mail art no. 80

Mail art

Two-sided piece. Timecard decorated with multi-color paint on front, back is decorated with paint, rubber stamp ink and affixed with U.S. postage stamps.

These two images show the front and back of a single postcard created from an IBM punch card. The front features a visually striking abstract artwork: a mix of vivid paint strokes layered across the pre-printed numbers and coding grid of the punch card. The paint’s vibrant reds, blues, and greens transform the utilitarian object into a colorful piece of mail art, typical of the experimental correspondence art movement of the late 20th century.

The back reveals the postcard’s functional side, turning the painted punch card into a personal communication. It bears the sender’s stamped address from San Antonio, Texas, and a postmark from July 1982. The handwritten note from Gene Elder to Daniel Graham thanks the recipient for a letter, combining art and casual correspondence. This hybrid of technological artifact, artwork, and personal note reflects the creative reuse of computer-era materials in mail art culture.

Elder, Gene

Poetry Collection, Special Collections, University Libraries

State University of New York at Buffalo

Poetry Collection, Special Collections, University Libraries

Basinski, Michael

Recipient: Graham, Daniel Mark

Hallwalls Collection

Time cards

Image

Still image

Text

Mail Art The Poetry Collection Box #1

MA0080

LIB-PC001

2/24/2006

5/25/2006

9 x 19 cm.

Paper (Fiber product)