USPS
Collaborative
Art
Project
With funding from the Community Arts Endowment of the Community Foundation of the North State, the County Arts Council produced a collaborative art project, bringing the communities in Siskiyou together when we could not be near each other.
Riffing off of the “Exquisite Corpse” method, an image was divided into sections and each section mailed, using USPS, to participants. Participants copied, employing their own interpretation, a portion of an image from an unknown work to an equivalent-sized blank medium. Each section was then sent to a second participant to embellish and add to. The final pieces were assembled into the whole work that will tour all eleven communities in Siskiyou. You can follow the project’s progress here and our social media pages.
Katsushika Hokusai
Japanese
Edo period, about 1834 (Tenpô 5)
Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper
Museum of Fine Arts Boston
William Sturgis Bigelow Collection
11.19647
This print depicts two carp as they travel upriver, jumping over falls, during their spawning run, similar to the salmon that travel through waterways in Siskiyou. In Japanese tradition, depicting carp completing this journey is meant to evoke ideals of strength and perseverance. What does this image make you think of? Are there local beliefs about the salmon that are similar?
The Arts Council chose this image for our collaborative art project to celebrate our community’s perseverance through the challenges of the past year. Unexpected change, overwhelming disasters, and prolonged separation have tested the resolve of our community. Drawing upon the resources we have, our creativity, our connectedness, and guaranteed postal delivery to every resident, we created a project to remind us that we can find our strength through connection and appreciate all for the perspective they bring. Looking at the collaborative mural, which elements catch your eye? What about them do you appreciate?
Each of these panels was created by two different artists. One artist copied the image from a portion of the larger mural, and a second artist added new elements on to the copied work. Neither artist knew what the full artwork was. What are some of the different styles you can see? Does the style of a panel make you see something you did not notice in the original?
If you were going to collaborate on a portion of this mural, what section would you choose and how would you create it?
Valentina Oliver, first artist
Acrylic on illustration board.
2020
Connie Meek, second artist
Acrylic overpaint.
2021
Kate Yorke, first artist
Watercolor on illustration board.
2020
Lynn Karpinski, second artist
Colored pencil, gold gel pen, and type from magazines.
2021
Kate Yorke, first artist
Watercolor on illustration board.
2020
Joaquina Oliver, second artist
Rhinestones and glitter
2021
Bridgétt Rangel Rexford, first artist
Dimensional paint on illustration board.
2021
Sebastian Oliver, second artist
Sand.
2021
Mark Oliver, first artist
Ink on illustration board.
2020
Christine O’Brien, second artist
Collage using art paper, teabags, with acrylic paint and ink.
2021
