ARTISTAMPS

My father was a stamp collector. He liked to collect mint sheets. He bought me my first stamp album when I was quite young and I was soon hooked. I collected every stamp I could find and even sent away for those packages of 100 unique stamps for $1. 00. It wasn't long before my collection was too large for my initial stamp alum and so I acquired THE SUPREME GLOBAL STAMP ALBUM. I learned about the world by collecting postage stamps; about such exotic places as Australian Antarctic Territory, Ifni, and the Ivory Coast. I also learned that Finland was really Sumi and Ireland was Eire. I became aware of world events as postage stamps arrived overprinted to deface the image of a former ruler, or with a country's new name. I also began to collect plate blocks and first day covers thinking that I really should specialize in some area of stamp collection. It got to the point where I was designing my own first day covers and sending them to the proper post office for stamping and cancellation on the First Day of Issue. I never really got to specialize. I just couldn't resist collecting any stamp, whatever its subject. Then life sort of caught up with me. I went away to university and left my stamp collection behind. Oh, I still saved every stamp that was different or foreign, but there seemed to be no more time to put them in an album, let alone separate them from the paper to which they were affixed

Years later, after I had begun teaching and organizing art exhibitions at Simon Fraser University near Vancouver, I found myself working with the American artist Joel Smith. Joel had been using postage stamps as a surface for his smaller paintings for a number of years. He referred to them as 'postal paintings'. I organized an exhibition of one of these paintings in 1969. We called it The Smallest Documented One-man Exhibition in the World and it was presented in the University theatre's foyer.

Two years later, after the opening of the new Simon Fraser Gallery at the University in 1971 (with myself as Curator/Director of Exhibitions), Robert Fried came up from San Francisco and showed me his new full-colour offset edition of  'Non-negotiable Eights'. The set contained two sheets of perforated stamp images. Each sheet contained five groups of ten stamps, one group for each of five images. One sheet was on gummed paper and one was on an ungummed rag paper, signed and numbered. The set also contained five large screen prints of each stamp image with the perforations represented by embossing. I quickly recommended this set be purchased by the University for its developing art collection.

During this period I was able to La Guild Graphic in Montreal in search of exhibition material for the Gallery and possible acquisitions for the art collection. Among the many prints laying around La Guild's studio was a perforated sheet of artist's stamps by Quebec artist Carl Daouset. I was able to meet the artist and convinced him to part with a sheet for the University's collection. He had not conceived of them as independent of the book he was producing, entitled 'Les Lettres Mortes'. I wondered if any other artists were producing works in this format and soon discovered that several Canadian artists were making use of it in their serigraphs. Christopher Pratt in Newfoundland had produced several large prints (77. 7 x 57. 9 cm) including "Blue Seal" (1970 and "Prince Albert" (1974). These images were drawn from Newfoundland postage stamp issues dating from 1865-94.

Another Canadian artist, Harry Savage, had produced a set of three serigraphs using the postage stamp format enlarged to 40 x 58. 2 cm. His stamp images depicted the state of wildlife in modern civilization. I recommended these works to the University's art acquisition committee and they too were purchased. It seems that I was reverting to my preadolescent days of stamp collecting - but now, at last, I was specializing.

In the late 60's and early 70's artists would drop by my office at the University to investigate the possibilities of selling their work, giving a talk, showing their slides, or doing whatever they could to make a few dollars. I always thought of these people as 'gypsy artists'. They travelled around North America promoting their ideas and activities by producing art events and leading discussions in artists' studios, university and college galleries and artist-run-spaces such as the Western Front inVancouver. They generally lived out of their cars or vans. Whenever these artists passed my way I would ask them if they knew any artists producing pseudo-postage stamps, or who were in some way working with the postage stamp format.

Ken Friedman came by the Gallery and his proved a turning point in my search for producers of artist's stamps and stamp images. Ken was very enthusiastic about my idea of an exhibition of such material, and told me of the stamp work of Fluxus. He offered to spread the word of my search and sent me examples of the Fluxus stamps, including the 'Yamflug' and 'Fluxpost' issues by Robert Watts. These issues are the earliest Artistamps produced in the United States that I have yet to come across. We discussed the possibility of the Gallery issuing a commemorative stamp in conjunction with the opening of the exhibit. Ken suggested that it might also be a ten-year commemorative. I liked tat idea and we agreed to collaborate on the production of the issue. I set the dates for the exhibit as October 29 - November 15, 1984.

In 1973 the Gallery presented its first exhibit of stamp works entitled Joel Smith: Postal Paintings and I continued to collect material for the 1984 exhibit; now entitled: Artists' Stamps and Stamp Images. For the production of the commemorative stamp Ken sent me two logos to be used as the focal point of the stamp and I proceeded to design the stamp myself using the logos according to Ken's instructions. Unfortunately, I apparently misinterpreted Ken's 10th anniversary suggestion as being the activities of Fluxus West, and not of the 10th anniversary of the issuing of the first Fluxus stamps, which I had thought was in 1973. Due to my misunderstanding the stamp reads 'Fluxpost West 1964-74". A rubber stamp cancellation mark was also produced and used to cancel the stamps on the exhibition's invitations. The cancellation also reads Fluxpost West 1964-74. Readers of the catalogue, which was not officially published until 1976, will still find a statement that "This stamp serves both as a document of the exhibition and as a commemorative of the work of FLUXUS WEST from 1964-74. "

Artist's Stamps and Stamp Images began to tour to other galleries immediately after its closing at the University. Two years after the inaugural showing, funds were obtained from The Canada Council to publish the exhibit's catalogue (a photocopy catalogue had been produced in 1974). The 1976 catalogue's Introduction states "The word 'stamp' as used in this exhibit refers; to what might be termed the pseudo-postage stamp; that is, an alternative stamp opposed to the normal government publications designed for use in the official or governmental postal services of the world. Also in 1976, the exhibition was presented at the Musee d'Art et d'Historie in Geneva as part of the larger exhibition Timbres et Tampons d'Artistes (May 6 - June 6). Two catalogues were produced for that exhibition, one for the opening, and one after the closing. The exhibit then returned to continue touring in Canada. It was later circulated in the USA by the Western Association of Art Museums and finally presented at P. S. 1 in NewYork during the winter of 1979-80. From New York the exhibit returned to Europe where it was presented at Hedendaagse Kunst in Utrecht as part of their exhibit Stamp Art (May 10 - June 8, 1980. From Holland the exhibit was sent to London where it was shown at Canada House. Following this showing the exhibit was presented in several other cities in England under the auspices of Canada House. Upon its Canada and Simon Fraser University in 1984, the exhibit was uncrated and the works either placed in storage or returned to the Gallery's 'Loan Collection' to be displayed throughout the University in offices and reception areas.

While the exhibit was on tour in England I was able to present The World of Donald Evans from July 19 - August 13, 1982 at the University's gallery. Organized and circulated by the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, that exhibition contained more than a thousand of Evans' watercolour stamp images. Then, in 1983, I curated an exhibition called SoHo Duo, which included a large selection of colour Xerox stamp sheets by New York artists Buster Cleveland and E. F. Higgins III. The purpose of all these exhibitions was to continue the examination of the use of the postage stamp format as a tool of the artist. The two years initial research (1972-74) had gathered work from 35 artists and 7 artists' groups in 9 countries. By the end of the tour of Artists' Stamps and Stamp Images, the collection included the work of 46 artists and 9 artists' groups in 11 countries, and the University, with the assistance of a grant from a local private foundation, had managed to acquire all these works for its art collection. As the title of the collection implied there was a natural division of work within the material: Stamps and Stamp Images.

Stamps included gummed or ungummed, perforated or imperforated pseudo postage stamps, photo stamps, poster stamps, and stickers which had been produced in an edition, either limited or unlimited.

Stamp Images comprised both images of single stamps and images of stamp sheets; i.e., containing multiple stamp images. These works included watercolours, acrylics, serigraphs (singed and numbered by the artist ), rubber stamped stamp images, postcards, collages, posters, etc. All these works illustrated the general 'look' of postage stamps. Perforations (in most cases) were illustrated, not actual and most, if not all, were on ungummed paper as well as being much larger in size than official stamps.

What determined the division (for the purposes of cataloguing) was whether or not the object could actually replace a 'postage stamp' on an envelope or postcard and have the same 'look and feel' of a postage stamp.

Another primary purpose of that exhibition was to discover what artist's had produced, not what they could produce. I did not invite artists to make new work, (excepting the case of the exhibition's commemorative stamp). When my research indicated an artist had produced work suitable for the exhibition, I invited that artist to submit work they had already completed. The reason for this was to discover how widespread the use of the 'postage stamp' format had become and not to cause artists who had never used the format to try it. As in all good plans, this was not always the case. Several artists, through one source or another, found out about the exhibit and produced work specifically for the exhibit. The work was received at the Gallery and subsequently included in the exhibit; after all, rules are made to be broken - if you know why you are breaking them. I broke my own rules because I thought the inclusion of some work made specifically for the exhibit would enhance the exhibit as a whole and I needed the material to make sure there was enough work to make a reasonable exhibit.

Participants in the Mail Art Network proved very helpful locating and referring names and addresses of artists who had produced suitable work, but the artists utilizing this format were by no means limited to Network participants. My interest was not to examine a specific Mail Art activity, but to examine the format's use among artists in general. Many of the artists who participated in the original exhibition were not even aware of Mail Art or the Network, let alone participated in it.

The works included in the exhibition were not for sale. They were on loan from the owners, in most cases the artists, until purchased by the University. As the exhibition was sponsored by and presented in a public (non-commercial) gallery, sales were of no importance; the function being to illuminate and educate the pubic about a specific art activity. I have often wondered if the exhibit inspired any artists to produce their own Artistamps. I have run into stamp artists who did see the show somewhere during its travels many years ago and seeing the work of other artists may have moved them forward, but I believe they would have gotten there anyway. Most of the artists I know personally just like the format. They have come to produce their own stamps, not because they know others are producing them, but because they have a need within.

I do know several artists; however, who have inspired others to produce such work. Donald Evans comes to mind, as does Guglielmo Achille Cavellini. Several Cavellini stamps were eventually added to the travelling exhibit. I have always liked Cavellini's work. It appeared to me that he believed art should be fun. I like to think so too. He also appeared to be 'thumbing his nose' at the manner in which art had become a modern 'Academy' run by the Marxist Intellectuals in collaboration with the 'Closed Market Capitalists'. Cavellini will be remembered by a large number of 'outsider' artists who, if nothing else, appreciate the fact that Cavellini had the money to spread his aesthetic without the help of the 'Academy'. Some of the best stamps in my personal collection are the ones that are 'as silly as the propaganda stamps issued by many governments'. Cavellini did what he wanted to do, in spite of suggestions otherwise. I am happy to have many of his books in my collection and feel fortunate to have some of his Artistamps as well.

Here in North America, E. F. (Ed) Higgins III was always encouraging the other 'would-be' or wan-a-be' stamp artists. He, along with Al Souza (USA. ), Coach House Press, Anna Banana, and Ed Varney (all of Canada) has, on occasion, invited artists to send in their stamp images, and then published them on collective sheets. A lot of artists participating in these editions had not produced their own stamps, and most probably never will. After all, how many artists have access to a perforating machine. We know the problems encountered in perforating some of the Fluxus stamps, why should it be any different for the rest of us. Following my early retirement from Simon Fraser University in 1985, I began to wonder once again (now that I had some time to wonder) what was happening with artists and the postage stamp format? I did know there was more activity locally than in 1974, particularly here in British Columbia with the work of Ed Varney and Anna Banana, and in the State of Washington with the work of C. T. Chew and Dogfish. There also appeared to be a lot more activity in Europe. Finally I began my research anew at the invitation of the Davidson Galleries in Seattle. I was to re-examine the field with the goal of presenting an exhibition at that leading commercial art gallery in December of 1989. Again the idea was not to invite artists to make new work, but to submit work already completed. (As a curator, I have always been more interested in what artists do of their own accord, than in what they will do at someone else's request. )The research resulted in a database of 577 names and addresses, with 80 artists submitting data on their past and current production. The database is being continually updated. Many of the names and addresses were from the database started by Michael Bidner in 1982, when he coined the term 'Artistamp'. I had sent Michael a copy of the published 1976 catalogue and he adopted by 'pseudo postage stamp' terminology for his term. He was all inclusive in what he considered anArtistamp (with the exception of artist's rubber stamp prints); i. e. "adhesive stamps, stationary items and stamp images issued as prints, drawings, paintings, etc." Michael used the term in a generic sense - to be all inclusive. I use the term in a specific sense, to be exclusive.

The 1989 "International Invitational Artistamp Exhibition" was held in the print rooms of the Davidson Galleries in December of that year. Unfortunately, plans to publish a full-colour catalogue as an issue of a magazine fell through as the magazine ceased publishing about the time of the exhibit. I did write a brief introduction; however, which was distributed then, and later included as part of a modest catalogue produced for another exhibit, the Pacific Northwest Artistamp Collective International Invitational Artistamp Exhibition, which was presented as part of the Seattle Arts Festival in August-September of 1990 and which is currently touring in Canada. In this introduction I wrote of the 'postage stamp format' as a universal symbol in the global village (which is defined in the Introduction. All Artistamps (but not all artist's stamps) utilize this symbol/format, but they are not all in the same medium. Those artists of the 'global village' who utilize this format, do so (in the greater majority of cases) for a very minor part of their artistic production. It is worth noting; however, that it is that portion of their production which is most widely distributed, seen, and collected. In the Introduction I also wrote that the postage stamp format had been adopted by some artists of the global village, namely those 'Artists of the global village who never adopted the economic view of reality'. It is not the only format used by such artists, nor is it the only art form representing the global village. But it is a unique one, and one which, as a carrier of new symbols, new visual messages and new aesthetic discoveries, lends an aura of authenticity to the creative efforts of these artists and legitimizes their imagination within the international society.

By this time, with the cooperation and support of the Davidson Galleries, I had formed the Pacific Northwest Artistamp Collective. The Collective acts as a repository for Artistamps from around the world - a place where the public can view and purchase Artistamps throughout the year. The Collective's membership is made up of the participating artists. The first exhibition drawn from the holdings of the Collective was the one mentioned above as being presented at the Seattle Arts Festival. Meetings with other producers of Artistamps during the festival led to discussions which attempted to define the term 'Artistamp'.

Following those discussions and at the invitation of Anna Banana of Banana Productions and International Art Post, I wrote a clarification of the term. My rational for this effort was my reasoning that a drawing is a drawing, whether it is of a building or pseudo postage stamp. An Artistamp is an Artistamp because it is not a drawing, not a painting, not a collage, etc. It is a pseudo postage stamp but there are pseudo postage stamps which are not Artistamps; i.e., counterfeit stamps. It is not a poster stamp, it is not a photo-stamp and it is not a postage stamp and it is not a stamp image. It seems to me that Artistamps may be considered 'Cinderellas' in philatelic circles but that is not my area of interest, and I leave that determination to others more appropriate.

My role as a curator has been to act as an intermediary between the artist and the public. It has always been my goal to present the results of my curatorial research to the general public and d, hopefully, be able to explain the results of this research in an intelligent and understandable manner to the general public. It is among the general public where I am beginning to see Michael Bidner's term 'Artistamp' recognized as a viable term identifying a specific and easily recognized format for art work. It has even been used in several recent philatelic publications.

After my discussions with local artists and much thought, I composed my definition for 'Artistamp' and included it at the conclusion of my essay entitled 'Artistamps: A Personal Quest', commissioned by Anna Banana for inclusion in her 1990 ARTISTAMP COLLECTOR'S ALBUM. It reads as follows:

ARTISTAMP: an object that meets the following criteria:
1. It was conceived in the mind of the artist.
2. It was produced by or at the instruction of the artist who conceived it.
3. It is a print, preferably on gummed paper.
4. It is produced in multiples, most often in several rows and columns on a single sheet which is then, when possible, perforated.
5. It is produced in a edition, preferably signed and numbered.
6. It gives some indication of the imaginary or actual issuing authority.
7. It carries a denomination of some sort.
8. It is a work of art.

Jas W. Felter

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