Mapping the unknown

I have been thinking a lot about maps since I read this article in Slate a couple of days ago. Julie Turner uses maps submitted by Slate readers to illustrate commonalities between hand drawn maps and to point out why they are often superior to the 'accurate' maps printed for the masses. Definitely worth a read. Julie Turner points out that hand drawn maps only include information necessary for the reader and this simplicity makes them more user friendly and personal. They also become more detailed as we get further from home - we dont need a guide to what is known. Also check out the comments section where this great link is posted. Wonderful inspiration for a pair of artistic travelers.

Contrast of colors

I think I was supposed to post this card earlier in April, because Lynn wrote on the back that it was getting warmer in Michigan although everything was still brown. The brightly colored leaves on the card seem to show that she is optimistic this will change. The blue spot emphasizes this point.

Like the brown of her outdoor world, the card's underbelly is sad. Lynn wrote that she had been excited to recently reconnect with a friend from home only to discover that her friend was terminally sick with cancer. She lamented this news and its timing, happy to catch up but longing for more time with her.

I remember receiving this card in the mail and instantly picking up the phone to call Lynn. Snail mail might be conducive to expressing some of these hard to share feelings but cannot compete with the telephone when immediate comforting is in order.

Color explosion

Jessica branched out to color! And it looks good....

I love how she blended the colors on this vegetable (I think onions) and I hope it comes across digitally! When Jess lived in DC she had a farmer's market almost right behind her house on weekends. I wonder if the first spring market was her inspiration for this card?

On her postcard she wrote to me about enjoying being at home for a few weeks between business trips. She was savoring some normal activities like meeting friends for drinks and getting doctor's appointments out of the way.

Her card and message remind me of a time in the summer when I was in DC and we spend a morning at the farmer's market. We ended up chatting with the vendors about how to keep your herb plant from dying off so you could keep getting fresh basil. One thing about being with Jessica, you will have conversations with everyone you meet. Its fun!

Nocturnal inspiration

When I am not working, I have been walking a lot at dusk and in the evening the past few weeks in Tamale. As night falls on the city, I find myself completely absorbed in the way that colors change. The coals of an iron stove light up a woman's green dress and the the bronze earth below. A red light silhouettes a woman carrying a silver pan on her head. Television light reflects on a crowd of faces gathered around an outdoor TV. They are flashes that I cannot seem to put on a postcard. For this reason, I had to share this link to a piece by the photo journalist, Lynn Saville, in the New York Times. I love these photographs as much as I love the city they capture.

Admitting guilty pleasures

Spring has sprung and Lynn is on spring break. It has been too long since we chatted on the phone. For this reason, it was especially nice to look at her card from last year. She had just finished taking her certification exam. After spending a lot of time studying, she was trying to remember what she used to do for fun. She admitted guiltily that she had been reading a lot of trashy novels - ones that you would usually save for an airplane ride. This made me laugh because my sister and I had a similar text message conversation. She admitted a current addiction to a 900 page book our mother sent her. Trying to make her feel better, I said that at least it was the Sri Lankan new year and she was home alone. I also reminded her of how when we were kids we used to try to sneak away from chores to read. This resulted in a practice of hiding our books in the waist bands of our pants and under our shirts so that our father could not see. We would rake the leaves or pull weeds until he stepped around the corner and then whip out our books to soak up a few more pages before he returned. The joke today is that my sister would need some very loose fitting elastic pants to hide her current obsession - or perhaps a mumu.

I hope you are also reading something fun on your break this year Lynn!

Trendsetting

We've inspired someone. My brother sent me a postcard from his trip to Delaware! On the back he wrote "your postal pals blog inspired me to write." Its fun that he took the time to send snail mail from here, although he also posted video from his polar bear so he's not too old-school.

Jess' card from last year is this nice drawing. She wrote, "I ended cutting paper because my glue stick dried up!" This little tidbit makes me laugh. Her drawing was inspired by a food magazine her dad left at her apartment- must have been old because card was from Spring. Jess also wrote about getting ready for a work trip to Pakistan, saying she spent time drawing to avoid packing.

Added Dimensions

We have been posting things other than cards lately. I'm wondering...do you like the additional things we've shared? Or should we just stick to our art?

OK, enough posing questions to the void! Jess' March 15th card from last year fell in her 'cut paper' phase. She put a printed design underneath adding some depth. She wrote, "next time I think I will paint/draw and then do a cut out on top. I think using this print is sort of cheating." Well, she went on to say what she had been up to: sewing,throwing another dinner party, hosting her Dad and Sister, so you could see why she'd need to cut a few corners to get her card in the mail on time.

I think the concentric circles are another cool abstract art experiment, much like her pears! The only thing I thought, was using a darker color paper to make the top stand out...I'm all for experiments and we know those don't always work out.