The Creative Caravan Collage Challenge!

Our old experiences, memories and fears guide us down the present path. It's not so much that you are the artist; you are the conduit.

~Nick Bantock

From My Thailand Journal.

So lately travelling has been on my mind. Okay, it's usually on my mind, but usually I have a trip planned somewhere at sometime. Now I just have moving on my mind. I think I am excited about the move because I haven't really thoroughly explored Vancouver. I don't know if I am just trying to trick my brain into thinking it will be like a new kind of travel adventure, but maybe it will be? It all depends on how you look at it.

Thailand

Anyway, I have been thinking about art too, and how much I love postcards. I might have lamented in some posts previously about how I lament the death of letters, handwritten postcards and brown paper packages tied up with string with the coming of the email revolution. I love receiving mail in the mailbox! Little gifts sent from the past to let us know someone special was thinking about us at one time. But all that ever comes is bills these days. Sigh.

Jordan

One thing I disliked about Turkey was the postal system. In the whole year of Istanbul, packages and postcards and letters that were sent to us never got delivered to our house. Not once. Turkish Postal workers, I hope you enjoyed that box of Easter Chocolate my mother sent us. And the cards Skinny Laminx sent my sister, and the various postcards sent to me from friends abroad. Boo!

Egypt

My sister's journals are amazing. I often look hungrily at them with jealous eyes. But it's a good Jealous because it propels me to focus more on how to improve what I am doing. But I admit, the queen of collage is Rene. (See her amazing stuff here. But please come back when you're done!)

When we travel, we often pick stuff up off the ground for our books, and we call it "Good Rum." (Short for rummage.) We have rules though.

1. It can't be too dirty. It can't have any poo or cigarette ash on it. It's got to be fresh litter.

2. If one of us finds something really cool, and it makes the other person jealous, if it can be split in some way, we share. If not, it's our duty to help look for another one. I remember a sewing machine matchstick box that was a major search. We ended up finding several, throwing away the grotty ones.

3. We can buy something for the label and give the product away if we can't use it. I remember Rene bought roly cigarette papers in Bangkok for the funky black cat label, only to hand the rolies back to the vendor and run away with the package! Classic!

India

The Challenge!

I am interested in doing some collage work again, and though I have some materials, I am low on Air Mail stickers, stamps, matchbox covers, tickets, labels etc. I thought it would be fun to see what would come my way if I opened this up as a challenge. If you send me an envelope full of stuff (75 pieces or more) I will send you a signed print, cross my heart and hope to die. The print will be either a coffee cup (collage print) or an Angkor Wat Bayan print (very Tin Tin, three block colour print), or a Fire Cracker Print. (Click here to see examples!)

Egypt

Things I am looking for!

Stamps.

Airmail stickers.

old postcards from anywhere.

cool small pictures.

Cool tickets of any kind (No parking tickets, please!)

cool labels.

Anything collageable and cool.

Duplicates are totally welcomed.

If you want to send me 75 Queen Elizabeth's, I'm down with that.

India

The Address!

Melanie Mehrer

General Delivery

Naramata, BC

V0H 1N0

Canada

Turkey

This is not my real address, obviously, but I'm tight with the post office workers so it is sure to get to me. I'll be in Naramata until most likely Mid-April, then it's off to Vancouver for the next big adventure, so don't wait too long, please! I'll post the spoils on this blog if I get enough stuff.

Happy Collecting!

XXMelanie

Egypt