Tuesday, October 31, 2006

 
Envelope of the letter received from Greg Byrd (Arky of Toast), Seattle, WA, USA.

 
Alyonka stamps designed and printed by Greg Byrd.

 
Mail artwork received in September from Pella Bakagianni, Athens, Greece.

Thursday, October 26, 2006

 
The Real Faces of Russian Mail Art (from left to right): Vadim Ryakhovsky, Olga Sorokina, Valery Shimanovsky, Tatyana Makarova, Ivan Zemtsov.


 
Thank you, Martin! The chocolate was very tasty!

 
In several minutes the chocolate will melt in our bellies.

 
After dinner we decided to taste chocolate received from Martin "Green Cat" Amstutz, Switzerland.

 
Olga Sorokina made us familiar with a piece of mail art received from Ryosuke Cohen, Japan.

 
Vadim Ryakhovsky's wife Liliana and himself.

 
But in three days we met again in Nizhnekamsk and selebrated mail artist Vadim Ryakhovsky's birthday. Photo: Talking over the letter by Jury Gik after those remarkable Alyonka discussions at www.mailart.org.

 
The next day after the presentation of Alyonka exhibition the members of SHIrMA group left Yoshkar-Ola for Nizhnekamsk. Photo: Our slight refreshment at "Unknown Lady" cafe. From left to right - Olga Sorokina, Tatyana Makarova, Valentine Repina, Valery Shimanovsky, Alex Nasekin.

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

 
After the official opening ceremony SHIrMA group began to create its "Mailartiosaurus" diptych.

 
Valery Shimanovsky, member of SHIrMA group.

 
Tatyana Makarova, member of SHIrMA group (right) and Larissa Iltubaeva, curator of the show.

 
The finished diptych was exhibited together with mail artworks.

 
Admiring chocolate girl Alyonka portraits...

 
Being proud of informative and stylish exposition...

 
Dreaming about future mail art exhibitions...

Saturday, October 21, 2006

 
From the very morning of October 9 people (especially students) were coming to Yoshkar-Ola Museum of Fine Arts to see the exhibition.

 
For the majority of the visitors it was their first acquaintance with mail art.

 
For the presentation I put on the t-shirt created and sent to me by Denis Charmot. It was really to the point!

 
At 3 p.m. the First International Mail Art Exhibition in Yoshkar-Ola was officially opened!

 
Veronica Smelova, master of ceremony, representative of the museum, participant of the project.

 
Valery Shimanovsky, Olga Sorokina and Tatyana Makarova (from right to left) presented SHIrMA group from Nizhnekamsk.

 
Aleksey Klukin (right), mail artist from Yoshkar-Ola, one of the most active participants of the project.

 
Mail artists Alexander Nasekin, Cheboksari (left) and Igor Krasnov, Yoshkar-Ola (right). Both of them are my very good friends.

 
Traditional group portrait not to forget that remarkable day.

Thursday, October 19, 2006

 
The day before the opening of Alyonka exhibition the members of SHIrMA group arrived in Yoshkar-Ola to participate in the show. Photo: Olga Sorokina is telling me the latest mail art news.

 
Valery Shimanovky is painting the canvas for "Mailartiosaurus and Mailartiopteryx" diptych.

 
Hanging Alyonka posters.

 
A special stamp has been ordered and made by the day of the presentation.

 
A booklet devoted to Alyonka project (with the list of all participants!) has been printed with the help of sponsors.

Wednesday, October 18, 2006

 
Yesterday the first article about the exhibition appeared in "Yoshkar-Ola", the most popular weekly newspaper of our city.

 
Two days before Alyonka mail art show we began to assemble the works.

 
Larissa Iltubaeva, the museum curator of the show.

 
More than one hundred frames were used to make the exposition.

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

 
Hello and best wishes to all!

I'm very happy to announce that yesterday at 3 p.m. the First International Mail Art Exhibition in Mari El Republic was opened in Yoshkar-Ola Museum of Fine Arts! Artworks sent to Yoshkar-Ola by more than one hundred and twenty artists from twenty-four different countries were presented to public!


I won't say it was great success. Usually art exhibitions attract not so many people as the concerts of pop stars or new Hollywood films. But during the whole day people were coming to the museum! More than sixty schoolchildren and students took part in three master classes held by Olga Sorokina, Tatiana Makarova and Valery Shimanovsky. On the ground floor of the museum an official post office was opened to sell stamps and to receive mail art letters. Every invited person had an opportunity to send a special Alyonka post card directly from the museum and to take a booklet with the list of Alyonka participants. For the opening ceremony I put on an Alyonka t-shirt designed and sent by Denis Charmot.

Very soon I'll post on the blog some photos illustrating the above-mentioned events as well as some recently received artworks. Sooner of later every participant of the project will receive my letter with the poster and the booklet. I hope articles about the exhibition will appear in newspapers. The general catalogue of Alyonka contributions on CD will put the final point in this project (if no other ideas occupy my mind by that time).

I am very thankful to Denis Charmot who told me about the discussion around Alyonka project on MAILART.ORG site (http://www.mailart.org/archives/542). I don't think I would visit any mail art sites within the few days between my return to Yoshkar-Ola and the opening of Alyonka mail art show. I was too busy to do it, as at that time I had to arrange many things - exposition, printed stuff and special stamp (see them below), negotiations with sponsors, information for mass media, etc. Nevertheless I visited the site and translated the content of the discussion for Valery, Olga and Tatyana.

Today Olga, Tatiana and Valery left Yoshkar-Ola for Nizhnekamsk. I'm very thankful to them for this visit and their support, for their interest in mail art. The day after tomorrow my wife Valentine and I will go to Nizhnekamsk and Yelabuga. We shall return on Sunday and I'll continue posting artworks and photos on this blog.

 
The first and the second pages of Alyonka invitation may be used as a simple post card.

 
This decorated envelope is the contribution of Gisela Pizzatto, Campinas, Brazil.

 
Mail artwork created by Carlos Botana, Coruna, Italy.

 
Envelope of the letter received from Carlos Botana.

 
Mail artwork by Emilio Morandi, Bergamo, Italy.

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