The Envelope

So, I'll do the qualitative aspect: style and the quantitative aspect: originality of the envelope but I have something that could be useful for you Nathan, for the medium: all the vocabulary of envelope manufacturers.

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Have you ever wondered...

Which envelope size is right for me?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njEq7Dj8L54&feature=related

Envelopes and their functions :

*Containing a letter/a document with the intention of sending it through the mail

Different envelopes for different objects/fragility/rapidity

Closing it and writing the address, sticking a stamp.

Traveling : this is the noblest part of the envelope’s role : unlike the letter, the envelope can handle to pass through the postal system without getting torn or damaged.

Opening it : generally deadly phase of the envelope’s life when it’s function is to travel. But not always, it can be used again as a storage place. (see next function)

*Storing things – regrouping things :

Envelope are often used (whether envelopes especially designed for this purpose such as this envelope to store pictures, or mail envelopes that are given a second use after they have been opened) to organize pieces of papers/bills/pictures, because of their practical size. In that case, they usually left opened or closed with a material which can be used several time (eg : the glue used for picture envelopes does not wear off, it can therefore be opened and closed repeatedly.)

*giving out something which must remain hidden

This function is what developed the use of envelopes : letters used to be folded, the seal came to prove the letter had never been opened before.

What must be given can be a love poem, someone's last will, or some money, or the name of the winner in a ceremony. It can also be the subject of an exam, or even a greeting card, because greetings are sometimes hard to voice out.

In many countries, envelopes are used to give money discreetly in some special occasions. In China, these envelopes are red. An envelope with money is not always sealed, for instance my grandmother never closes them for some reason, and she also uses smaller envelopes than those she would use in the mail. Hence, we can see that this function is distinct from the two others.

Signification :

We can see three clusters of meaning for the envelope :

*One related to the secrecy of a message kept by a cealed envelope. ==> love & death.

Death :

• The White Stripes : Death Letter (also the Gift by the Velvet Underground) ;
• Death Letter Blues, Geoff and Maria Muldaur
• Death Letter, Son House

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qO4RUeyt8mY

Hamlet and the reversal of fate thanks to the seal of Denmark he possesses.

Love : Durher’s work suggests the secrecy kept behind closed letters. It also show to what extent envelopes and letters are related to the genre épistolaire.

open with no possibility of going back. i.e. from ignorance to awareness of a certain fact. The person holding a closed envelope can ignore the importance of the news he is conveying (like in Death Letter). Because it is a boundery, envelopes tend to be neglected after they have revealed their secret.

*One linked to circulation, flow, movement

Return to sender, Elvis Presley

The lyrics do not suggest the same things about love then other works linking mail and love ; here it is more about transitory aspect of love relationships. Also, the envelope switches function. It is first a protection for the letter which goes through the mail ; then it turns into a way to deliver a message without voicing it out loud. (The envelope, again is the boundery : the girl refuses to open it in order to avoid the awareness of the boy's excuses).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PU5xxh5UX4U

Mail Art and Air Mail Dress

"A l’image de la «Air Mail Dress» en 1999 de Hussein Chalayan qui une fois repliée, se glisse dans une enveloppe intégrée à la robe (ci-dessus).Issue d’une collection de vêtements de papier, cette robe se replie sur elle-même pour prendre la forme d’une enveloppe prête à poster. L’expéditeur peut donc imprégner cette robe immaculée d’une double empreinte : celle de son écriture et celle de son corps. Le vêtement est ici assimilé à un conteneur du corps et à un contenu de la personne. Il s’agit de se raconter."

The Air Mail dress as all paper dresses and clothes, is designed to be short-lived. It suggests the volatility of concrete things, and is designed to be in movement.

*Dimension of exchange : Mail art & a historical development from the 60s onwards made the focus go from the inside (the message) to the outside (the form and the envelope)

Reflexion on Art : an exchange ; relation between form and message

"L'art entre dans la vie quotidienne et valorise les rapports humains. Ces mouvements artistiques aimaient se moquer de la rigidité de l'institution postale. Le chef de file des futuristes, Marinetti, considérait le Mail Art comme « une offensive contre la transition académique, à la conquête de la modernité rêvée ». En adressant par la poste ces « œuvres d'art », ces artistes détournent les circuits traditionnels des musées, galeries ou institutions diverses et subvertissent le fonctionnement du marché de l'art."

J-M Folon exprime l’idée que l’art est un échange dans lequel l’artiste propose quelquechose aux yeux des gens, qui doivent à leur tour l’enrichir avec leur propre vision.

Mail Art Today > Nada Zero http://nada.zero.free.fr/

Mail Art Accross the World