Mail Art!

From Gloria Federwitz, Wisconsin

I can't believe that this is the first Mail Art that I have received from my home state of Wisconsin! I really loved these two postcards Gloria sent!I guess I haven't really been promoting myself very much in Wisconsin though. I really should.

The other day I was thinking about how the outside world sees artists and galleries in Wisconsin, and I came across a blog post where somebody from Chicago was talking about how he thought that people didn't take Chicago artists seriously. I thought--well, then there isn't any hope for Wisconsin artists! However, I don't agree with him about Chicago artists. After all, there are many artists from Chicago that were widely recognized as successful, great artists, like Ed Paschke (who happens to be one of my favorite artists ever).

And as far as Wisconsin artists goes, I think we have a lot of great artists up here as well! My hope is that more people will stop being so pretentious about buying art at the "major hubs" like New York, for example. After all, in this globalized economy, with the advent of the Internet, anybody can see that artists come from every corner of the globe, and that you don't have to be in New York City to be a great artist. One of my favorite galleries in Wisconsin is the Tory Folliard Gallery in Milwaukee, for example. One of my old professors from college, Mary Alice Wimmer, is represented by them. She does amazing work, and I am so glad to have learned her watercolor techniques! I've also seen another one of their artists in action--Dennis Nechvatal.

I could go on and on about how I think that many professional Wisconsin artists are underrated. All of them have had to at least exhibit in Chicago to get any credibility. And I understand that's how it works right now. But I want to change that by opening a gallery that brings in cutting edge artwork. Too many galleries in Wisconsin only show what they know the local people will "like". Wisconsin needs more challenging art.

So the point is, I am going to start promoting my projects in Wisconsin and start getting more involved in the Wisconsin art community. I have to say, there are some great Wisconsin arts organizations in place already! And I do already have two Wisconsin artists on The Emergence Project, Amy Schmutte and David Kwasny.

I want to let it be known that I am looking for more Wisconsin artists and artisans. The plans for my gallery and handmade design store have recently been expedited, and we are tentatively putting the grand opening date for next summer!

That being said, even if you are not from Wisconsin and you are interested in selling your art or handmade goods in Culture Eclipse, feel free to contact me. I prefer to take work on consignment but may buy some things wholesale as well.