WELCOME TO ONE WORLD

It was created as part of the PLEXUS Chalkboard forums in 1996 under the moderatorship of Mark Bloch, who named it after "THE ONE WORLD POSTAL ART SHOW", an exhibition of mail art he organized in the same year.

Follow this link to read Mark Bloch's original introduction and Mail Art links

ONEWORLD in the New Millenium

We thank Mark for his moderatorship of ONEWORLD until 2001. Our new moderator, honoria has been a Mail artist since 1989. Mark Bloch and Rachel Nation have written her biographies which can be found at the preceding link.

Honoria's Introduction

To read a post click on the blue heading to open the full message. To reply scroll down to a text window at the bottom of the message. Type your questions or response into the box then click the "post message" button. Click "return to index." Your message will appear just below the original title on the message board.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

If you are new to mail art here are several frequently asked questions about the Correspondence Art Network.

HOW DO I PARTICIPATE IN MAIL ART?

You can begin here at the One World message board.

First read the messages. You will find examples of "mail art calls." A mail art call is an invitation to participate in a mail art exhibition or exchange. Most mail art invitations are for snail mail objects such as postcards, letters, collages, photography, drawings, copies, prints, rubberstamping, recycled junk, etc., but recently digital art is entering the flow. A mail art call, or invitation to an exhibition, commonly has several suggestions to guide you. The guidelines usually suggest a deadline, a preferred technique, a suggested size, a theme, and always an address.

THE HEART OF MAIL ART CONNECTIONS by Anna Banana

One-to-one exchanges are the "heart" of networking. Entering shows and projects leads you to find persons to engage in more individual exchanges, letters, artworks, etc. The exhibitions are an outgrowth of the original artist-to-artist networking. Contact with like-minded folk was the thing that got me hooked, rather than the "rewards" of a show catalogue. By "like-minded," I mean persons who pursue creative activity outside the gallery circuit, who do it for the pleasure and growth they get from it, rather than seeking financial rewards as a primary art-making motivation.

ARE THERE RULES OR TRADITIONS I SHOULD KNOW ABOUT?

Yes, over the thirty-year evolution five unwritten rules, or traditions, have evolved.

1) no jury will judge the work
2) all work sent to an exhibition is shown
3) no fee is charged, nor is mail art sold
4) documentation of the exhibit is sent to all participants by the host
5) no returns . . . The host of the project keeps the works sent.

These "rules" may be printed or posted in an invitation, but mostly the rules are unwritten traditions. The traditions encourage democratic participation in the network, free exchange of art, as well as unanticipated convergences of ideas, cultures, aesthetics, politics, and media.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I SEND A PIECE OF ORIGINAL ARTWORK IN RESPONSE TO A MAIL ART CALL?

Mail art uses the post office as a means of distribution. Mail art invitations can be announced months or a year before a deadline. Because of this unique time lag you may not receive any feedback to your contribution for quite a while. Some exhibition hosts send direct mail art in response to yours right away but it is common for an exhibition deadline to pass before you receive documentation of an exhibit. Mail art exhibitions take a variety of forms. The exhibit may be in an artist's studio, at a party, in a school, in other public spaces, or in galleries or museums. The exhibition host traditionally compiles a list of everyone who participated in the exhibition to send to all contributors. In addition to a list of names and addresses, the exhibition documentation may take the form of anything from a simple photocopy to a full-color catalog, a CD-Rom, a poster, a booklet, a collection of photos, newspaper articles about the exhibition, notice of a website with scans of the whole showŠyou never know. Occasionally no documentation is sent due to unforeseen circumstances, but documentation is a tradition regarded as a vital sharing of information about the mail art network and a critical step in each project. If you choose to host an exhibition, it is your responsibility to respect the traditions; to display all the work you receive, and to create and send documentation to all participants.

WHERE CAN I FIND MORE INFORMATION ABOUT MAIL ART?

Mail art uses the post office as aAs you read the One World posts, follow links, and exchange information you will learn that each mail artist has their own unique experience of the network. You will find other discussions and web sites and your knowledge of the mail art network's size and range of activities will grow. Here are a few great links to follow to learn a lot quickly.

Mark Bloch's:

This site was the first Ray Johnson site and (and second mail art site ever- missing Cracker Jack's by only a week) and provides some nice info on the origins of the genre: (MB)
http://www.echonyc.com/~panman/

Ruud Janssen's:

Michael Lumb's thesis on the history of mail art provides comprehensive reflections on systems and trends throughout the evolution of the network.

Dragonfly Dream

Zena Zero links to mail art sites and shows some digitized illustrations of mail art.

RAY JOHNSON CATALOG

Gudis, C., & Farmer, J. (Eds.). (1999) Ray Johnson Correspondences. Columbus, OH: Wexner Center for the arts.

Ray Johnson is often referred to as the father of mail art. Ray Johnson Correspondences is a catalog from an extensive exhibit of works by Ray Johnson Essays and an interview give personal and historical perspectives of Johnson's New York Correspondence School mailings and performances. This catalog is available at bookstores online and at the Whitney Museum in NYC and Wexner Art Center in Columbus, OH museum shops.

PARTICIPATE

One World is a mysterious and creative space between the pixels of your browser and the contents of your snail mail box.

See you in the mail.

honoria