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A Handmade Tale

February 18, 2022 Frank Handmade, Incoming 0 Comments

If it’s a story I’m telling, then I have control over the ending…
But if it’s a story, even in my head, I must be telling it to someone.
You don’t tell a story only to yourself. There’s always someone else. Even when there is no one.

Margaret Atwood, A Handmaid’s Tale

I’ve mentioned many times how much I like handmade postcards. I’m actually really drawn to them. (Yeah, I didn’t mean to get that cute, but I think I’ll leave that in here.) They’re one-of-a-kind pieces of art. I always separate handmade cards from other cards when I get them. The trick is I’m still figuring out a way to display them. Right now I keep them in archival storage boxes. They vary so much in size I haven’t gotten an album approach yet, but I’m working on it. These wonderful handmade postcards will be in that mix.

Rachel laminated this original drawing of Biggie for a Valentine’s card
Betsy got enamel pins for the 50 states; then she made paintings. How cool is this one of the Nutmeg State?
Serece created this Sumingashi floating ink art card. I’m even Zen about the cancellation; it’s another art element.
Russ sent this beautiful card from NYC before Christmas. It took 7 weeks to come 90 miles north. Worth the wait.
Orla sent me a second Imbolc card! This one with a heart attached.
Tara was in a Magical Fairyland in November. This card arrived in February. I hope she’s still in Magical Fairyland. I’d stay.
Justin created this art card for InCoWriMo. Thanks a bunch, buddy!

Flaming Flowers that Brightly Blaze

February 2, 2022 Frank Art, Incoming 14 Comments

The artist Nikita Regina sent this Vase with Irises (1890) postcard that shows a Vincent van Gogh painting I was lucky enough to see in the Rijksmuseum once upon a starry, starry night. The magical quality of the card and Vincent’s work is beautiful, but Nikita’s needlepoint stamp outshines it all.

Flaming flowers that brightly blaze / Swirling clouds of violet haze / Reflect in Vincent’s eyes of China blue / Colors changing hue

Don McLean, Vincent (1972)
Vincent van Gogh features prominently in The Postcardist office

Besides having lots of Vincent paraphernalia in my office, I also could listen over and over to Don McLean’s song Vincent (which some call Starry, Starry Night). I had the original American Pie album, and that song concluded our 8th Grade dance. But it was Vincent that I listened to more often. That song sent me to the public library to learn as much as I could about the artist. What a bit of serendipity that I ended up living a 10-minute walk from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam many years later. Or that last October, I sat on a cushion at the Immersive Van Gogh exhibit in Minneapolis and watched that experience play through three full times.

I never forgot how that fascination with Van Gogh all started. With a song. This song.

Just look at how special this is. Nikita used my magic number for the stamp value. Thank you.

Look at the magnificent detail on that needlepoint “stamp” Nikita created

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