The Postcard Project
200 Postcards, 200 Artists, 200 Responses to an Incredibly Life-changing Year.
At the beginning of November 2020, and the start of the UK’s second national lockdown, ARTISTS RESPONDING TO ... sent 200 postcards across the UK to 200 artists. These artists were invited to reflect on the year 2020 and create artwork directly on the postcards.
The artistic responses in the project range from paintings, drawings, lino prints, textile artworks, collages, photography and much, much more. These artworks reflect on experiences of COVID-19 as well as environmental, political and social issues or triumphs.
The years 2020 and 2021 were extremely unpredictable, consumed by a global pandemic, environmental turmoil and political warfare, but we also experienced community, unity and action. We have all been through many physical and emotional challenges or changes since then, and The Postcard Project demonstrates a strong, inspiring and uplifting sense of resilience and community.
Seeing how much every artist had been affected in such different ways really put contemporary life into perspective. Each postcard artwork responds to a different personal experience that we can all relate to. They are raw and honest visualisations which shed light on everything that was thrown at us collectively, and although they are small in size, they are hugely powerful.
The postcards involved in this project have been curated into an Exhibition and Art Book, which is available to purchase in our shop.
We sent the artists via Royal Mail:
- A small cardboard-backed envelope
- An A6 300gsm postcard in a biodegradable sleeve
- A 1st Class stamp to return the postcard
- A return address label
The artists then created their artwork onto the postcards and returned them using their local Post Box.
Collaboration With
The Net Gallery
We teamed up with The Net Gallery to create a 3D virtual scan of The Postcard Project Exhibition. This meant that everyone who wasn’t able to make it down to London for the weekend of our exhibition still had the chance to experience the showcase as if they were there. This virtual experience of our exhibition is also extended to our international community.
The Net Gallery has created a free online directory called Artist N Virtual – a social space for artists, curators and creators, making it easy to profile your practice and connect with like-minded people in the industry. Join today for free at: https://www.artistnvirtual.com
£17.99
All 200 artworks featured in the project have been curated and published into an Art Book. The book is a perfect, powerful memento of all the struggles and triumphs we have each experienced throughout such a life-altering and historical period of time.
All proceeds from the book sales will go towards creating even more opportunities for our growing arts community