Wanting to do something of meaning in relation to the upcoming election, I participated in a short, online session given by Alexandra Sheldon to learn how to make mini-collages for a project called “Postcards to Voters.” The idea was to make small, original pieces of art to send to prospective voters to encourage them to vote by mail. The organization provides the specific message to include as well as the addresses from states where these efforts were needed. The artist does not identify herself beyond a first name.
Fortunately, I had some leftover post-cards from a work project I did many moons ago and used these as my base (after applying additional postage!) Of course, I love making collages, but the goal here was to make these postcards as artistic as I could without agonizing over them. I really enjoyed making them and experimented with a variety of imagery. For example, for one collage, I used a part of an old Chinese brush painting I had made more than 40 years ago. Some of my designs were more abstract or whimsical than others.
I hope that people appreciated them and that some felt that much more inclined to vote with this additional prod. And I felt like I was doing something to help promote democracy.
