REICHERT, Bernd (Belgium) Voyages of Discovery - Japan

Voyages of Discovery - Japan

Unique Book dated 2012: Colophon: “Reflecting on a black hole in the toilet of the (?).  Impressions from a journey through Japan in May June 2012. For Cheryl, Bernd”.   I remember the wait for this book Bernd had said he had made for me - “a portrait of a city, portrait of a movement”.  I have quite a few of Bernd’s unique handmade books, including The World is a Town and 100 billion suns. From Bernd’s website - “born in 1960 on a rainy day behind the Iron Curtain. Tried to escape Germany after the reunification in direction Pacific Ocean, but stranded at the shores of surrealist Belgium. Lives there in Brussels as a happy economic refugee creating artist books and object boxes. As a printmaker I specialized in woodcuts and wood intaglio prints.

Robert Rehfeldt showed him a mail art archive around 1985, but it took until 1992 until he joined the network”. He is also the Editor of the assembling magazine “Bizarre Cities”.

This unique book is created using collage, drawing and text - a real work of art and one I would have found very difficult to part with.  Having not been there, but loving the minimalism of Japan, set in a maximum of crowded bussinism (my mental view of Japan), this book echoes a mental voyage of discovery I have had on Japan.  See: http://www.bernd-reichert.net

Lest We Forget Elizabeth - Cheryl Penn

Lest We Forget Elizabeth

Colophon: Unique artists book, accordion bound, lazer print Photostats from Harm Done series, collage, drawing with pencil, charcoal, water colours, stamping, stencils dated 2009.  This book is still hard to bear. The story of Elizabeth Fritzel is one of those moments when one looks into the heart of a man that is darkness itself. I wonder who ever thinks of her now, but I hope she and her children are now living a life worth living.

Dequesnes, Christian-Edzire (France)

Dequesnes, Christian-Edzire (France)

BAZAR BLEU nuit/12.12 Invisible Man Blues / Le moulin des Loups no 6  - hivers 2015/2016

Christian Edziré Déquesnes, publishers journals, periodical publications, chapbooks and is also a poet, writer and singer.  Through John Bennett (USA), Christian contacted me in December last year abut my poetry. I was hugely pleased to be included in one of these volumes, and will most certainly be sending a series of chapbooks in exchange. The music on his blog is a great listen, sometimes an unusual listen!  See: http://lemoulindesloups.blogspot.co.za

Hacker, Karl-Friederich (Germany) footura black editions - The Collage Art of Pete Spence

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The Collage Art of Pete Spence

Glossy printed book, unnumbered, sent by Karl as part of his footura black editions.   Pete Spence (Australia) is a wordsmith, visual poet and Mail Artist with a career spanning from the early 1970s to the present day.  Karl collected a large number of his collages via the medium of mail art, dating quite far back and from these cards has produced this edition.  I wish I knew a little more, but I'm really pleased to be on Karl's mailing list!

Pal Csaba (Hungary) - Untitled

Unique Book, 29 double sided pages, mixed media including painting, collage, printing and drawing.  Pal Csaba (Budapest), a book artist (only part of Pal’s art practice) sent this beautiful book as a submission for Mail Art Makes the World a Town. As the book was bound instead of loose sheets, I was very loathe to dismember it. Luckily for me, Pal did not intend this fate for this work. Abstract Expressionism at its best.   

I met Pal thought Mail Art on IUOMA and although he never sent much Mail Art, he contributed to various book projects.  I consider myself very fortunate to have this book.