A Postcard As An Art Piece
The Art of a Postcard + Limited Edition Postcards of Fragility Performance #3
Whenever I visit a museum, the first place I wander into is their bookshop. I may not buy a book, but I will always buy a postcard. As an artist, it is essential to decorate my walls with images and words that energize my space. Like an art piece, postcards bring inspiration and curiosity into your home, but they are easy to access, frame, and hang.
Aside from decorating my own space with them, postcards are one of my favorite gifts to give. That same energy I look to bring into my space is the same energy I hope to give to others. Art postcards are thoughtful, wallet-friendly gifts that create a connection between the giver, the receiver, and the artist whose work is featured on those little cards.
When I give someone an art postcard, I think about my relationship to the receiver and what their relationship could be with that artist’s work. It’s a great way to introduce new artists to others, and you can write them a personal letter on the back. A win win. I absolutely love giving a friend or family member an art postcard I think they would love, and then later seeing it on their fridge or framed. And just like that, they have a new artwork in their home.
Early on in my art practice, I learned how the legendary artist Charles White made his art accessible. His work was on the walls of museums, but it was also in the homes and spaces of everyday, working-class people. Specifically, Black people. From calendars to posters to lithographs, his work was affordable and available. It is White who showed me the significance of keeping your work within your community.
It is easy to overlook a postcard, but for me, they have been essential to building my art collection and showing my love to the people around me. Since 2018, I have turned my photographs into postcards, using them as small gifts and as a way for more people to collect my work.
This has been a big year for the Fragility Series. Works from this series have been shown in three cities across the country. I knew that Fragility Performance #3 would be my next set of limited-edition postcards.
In June, for the first time since grad school, I performed the third Fragility Performance at Studio Contro in Brooklyn, New York. Evelyn Lee, my former cohort mate and the photographer of the first two Fragility Performances, documented this one right before she moved back to Taiwan. Like the other photographs from the two previous performances, I was blown away by Lee’s ability and eye to capture the energy of this work.
I love these photos so much; it was hard to choose just a few, like I have in the past. So I have chosen eight of my favorite photographs from this performance. I could tell you why I love each of them, but I hope you all will tell me instead :)
Each postcard is $10. You can collect a pack of 4 for $36 or all 8 for $68.
They are editions of 31 and 32, signed, numbered, and dated.
Each postcard is printed on 16-17pt stock paper with a matte coat finish on the front.
Shipping is free and includes a sticker from my Temporary Sculptures series.
Collect one for your home or a loved one here.
With Love,
Ciarra K. Walters
I love the idea and practce of giving postcards and making art accessible through postcards.