Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261 
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Nov 24, 2020 17:07:18 GMT
For the past few years, I have been creating a series of artworks (mostly graphite drawings) which I call temporarily 'Postal Art'. This series consists of two types of artworks, which I shall explain in the following paragraphs, before asking my questions. /***** The Concept *****/  The first concept is inspired by what is called a ‘maximum card’ in philately. A maximum card is a postcard on which one fixes a stamp that corresponds to the theme of the postcard on the image side, then the stamp is cancelled at a location that is also related to the theme of the stamp. Sometimes even the date of cancellation matters. For instance, one can fix a stamp of Mozart on a postcard showing a portrait of Mozart and get the Salzburg postmark on Mozart’s birthday. This way all philatelic elements are in maximum concordance, hence the name ‘maximum card’. As a part-time stamp collector, I possess many European stamps of historical figures, sometimes multiple ones for the same person. I want them to appear on the same image; a regular postcard is simply too small to achieve this goal. Also, I want to create unique souvenirs of my bicycle tour; postmark is a cheap and universal souvenir that virtually every country provides. So I decided to make drawings on 9"*12" art papers, showing — whenever possible — the people and their birthplaces / residences. Then I put the stamps on and got them cancelled at their respective hometowns / related locations etc. During my trip to Europe last summer, aside from a few works for which I could not get the postmarks — sometimes because the post office was closed on the day of my visit, sometimes the clerk refused to cancel my stamps due to ‘security reason’ —, I have successfully collected most of the postmarks I aimed for. I don't know what type of collecting this should be classified; at least I collect stamps and postmarks. Some have called my artworks ‘covers’, but to avoid confusion with cover in the traditional philatelic sense that means an envelope, I chose to call them ‘artworks’ for the moment.  The second series of artworks I have created over the years are mostly about the stamps; the postmarks matter little. This endeavour started as an exchange of hand-drawn postcards with a pen-pal of mine. She would draw me illustrated postcards every now and then. In return, I too tried to draw her something on the envelopes, or on the cover of a parcel. In this exchange, I have had the idea of matching the drawings with the theme of the stamps I plan on using. Technically, I have started this artistic concept before learning about the existence of maximum card. For this type of artworks, the stamps are used as actual postage. For the moment I haven't used any location-specific stamp yet, so the stamps simply got cancelled on the date of shipment from my hometown Montreal. You can view my artworks at: photos.app.goo.gl/ekxbeB4NGyLqDqQH9(Many are still left to be complete.) /***** The Questions *****/ My first question to this community is: What words would you use to call my ‘artworks’, first series and second series? Card, cover, envelope, ... none seems to fit exactly. They don't seem to conform to (insofar as I am aware) any philatelic convention. ‘Souvenir sheet’ would fit better, but it's already taken. My second question is a plea for help. This year marks the 250th anniversary of the German composer Beethoven, in whose honour Deutsche Post has issued a commemorative stamp. I really want to get a postmark preferably on the 17th of December 2020 — the date of his baptisation — from a post-office in the city of Bonn on an artwork I am about to create (presumably showing a portrait of Beethoven and his birth house). Is there anyone capable of travelling there at the end of the year to help me getting the desired postmark? Given the current COVID-19 situation, I guess only people already living in Germany would be able to make such a trip. I will gratefully offer you an artwork of mine specifically created for you as a token of thankfulness. /***** P.S. *****/ I am well aware of the Mail Art movement but judging from what I understood, such artwork and the stamp don't need to be in concordance. So my concept is more specific. I don't just produce portraits, I do landscape drawing as well. It's just that for my Tour of Europe, I have far more portraits than landscape drawings. On this forum there is a thread Hand-Crafted Covers dated back in 2014 which resembles what I have been doing. |
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Post by mdroth on Nov 24, 2020 18:43:55 GMT
Hello Linda - welcome to the forum! Your work is great - really fantastic!! Would love to see more - keep posting pictures! As to your questions: There's a word or term for virtually everything in philately. They all have very specific meanings... Most - if not all - assume & imply that the 'item' was issued by a postal issuing entity. Going beyond that, the terminology becomes subjective. I would classify your work primarily as 'souvenir cards' - esp for the ones without postmarks. You could certainly call the ones with the postmarks 'Maximum Cards' and the definition would fit. (If on an envelope, then you can use the word 'cover' without hesitation.) (Artwork on covers is typically called a 'cachet' - esp for First Day Covers) In my opinion, you shouldn't limit yourself to philatelic words. "Original Postal Art by Linda" - for example (!) - would fit! Have you ever heard/seen a 'remarque' on stamps? They are awesome - something you may wish to consider for future work: remarques |
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stanley64
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What I collect: Canada, USA, Netherlands, Portugal & Colonies, Antarctic Territories and anything that catches my eye...
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Post by stanley64 on Nov 25, 2020 9:40:31 GMT
Great stuff Linda and welcome to The Stamp Forum! We share a number of collecting interests and I look forward to your postings along with the discussions. Pull up a chair, there is plenty of room...
For now, if you want a label for you work, I would call it "Postkard Art" In fact, one of my favourite artist is Arnold Belkin and I would be most interested in seeing the "postkard art" you create whilst being influenced or inspired by this issue - Mexico Scott n.º 1322.
Again, welcome and happy collecting!
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kasvik
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Posts: 543
What I collect: Cancels mostly, especially Sweden Gävle and Lidingö, Switzerland Geneva, Germany Pforzheim
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Post by kasvik on Nov 25, 2020 14:30:04 GMT
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Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Nov 26, 2020 12:24:26 GMT
Thank you all for comments and suggestions. I like the label of 'Postkard Art', but would want a second one that helps to distinguish Series I from Series II. And preferably, the two labels can show some kind of connexion since the concepts are similar. For the moment, I have put my artworks in a separate Google Photo Album because I don't have access to the harddrive on which high resolution photos of these artworks are stored. For some of them, I can only upload low-res version for preview purpose. Here are a couple more in high-res:     mdroth : Wow! These remarques are really awesome! Thank you for introducing them to me. stanley64 : That Arnold Belkin stamp looks interesting. Let me think what I can do with it  kasvik : A friend of mine has suggested me to monetise my artistic and philatelic endeavour, and indeed sorting out copyright issue would be a huge challenge. As a visual artist myself, I am aware of this issue, and that's the reason why I hesitate to monetise my works. For the moment, this is my personal hobby and my works are meant to be souvenirs of my travel. To produce realistic drawing, I have to rely on some kind of visual representation of the subject, be it a photograph or a painting. To avoid copyright issue, I have so far produced Postkard Art using old, copyright-free materials, with perhaps the only exception of the Cohen Postkard Art that is based on a more recent photograph taken in the 60's. The American photographer passed a way in 1997, but I think the photo is still copyrighted. That's why I didn't sell it, but offered it as a kind of fan art to a Taiwanese musicologue of Western pop music (he is also one of the translators of Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan). The Cohen series will consist of 3 artworks based on different photographs and are not for sale. Maybe one day I will exhibit them if I can get the permission. Portrait aside, for my landscape or animal drawing, I either use my own photos or blend several images together so that the end result cannot be traced to a single source. In contemporary artistic practise, this method is very commonly used to avoid copyright issue. I would definitely love to learn more about the copyright issue in philately. Thanks for the link! |
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charleso
**Member** 
UK stamp price goes up to 85 pence in January 2021. How does that compare to other countries?
Posts: 22
What I collect: chess, patent thematics
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Post by charleso on Dec 4, 2020 12:16:04 GMT
Yes, the law is rather complicated and has potential trapdoors. It also varies from country to country. Best to take professional advice on such things. |
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charleso
**Member**
UK stamp price goes up to 85 pence in January 2021. How does that compare to other countries?
Posts: 22
What I collect: chess, patent thematics
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Post by charleso on Dec 4, 2020 12:18:39 GMT
I would be happy to get into an email conversation on this if you want informal advice. I can be contacted on c.oppenheim@btinternet.com
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Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Apr 16, 2021 2:38:00 GMT
Dear all, I have finally decided how to name my 'artworks' in the Postkard Art project. Let me present before you, the naming scheme I have designed: - linover, a new coined word driven from 'Linda’s cover' = an artwork for which at least one stamp of corresponding theme exists (the stamp is not yet fixed on the artwork);
- semiperfect linover = a linover on which at least one corresponding stamp is fixed;
- quasiperfect linover = a semiperfect linover for which the stamp is cancelled but neither the location nor the date of the cancellation corresponds to the theme of the linover (it can be because such correspondance doesn’t exist);
- perfect linover = a semiperfect linover on which a corresponding postmark is fixed (be it by date or by location);
- superperfect linover = a perfect linover for which the other element of the postmark (date or location) also corresponds to the theme of the linover.
So, my 'Series I artworks' are perfect or semiperfect linovers, while my 'Series II artworks' are quasiperfect linovers under this naming scheme. See the following image for examples:  Originally, I was planning on coining the word 'hanover' for 'handcrafted cover', but there was concern about how to pronounce the first syllable of 'hanover', plus many of my friends voted that this thing should bear my name. Although I am not a big fan of naming things after people (for I am awful with proper nouns), I would love to honour a democratic result. The classification is driven from the family of 'perfect numbers' in mathematics, which is my (former) area of study. I don't have any example yet -- but potentially, some of my perfect linovers will have postmarks from 2 different locations (I plan on getting extra postmarks for my Balzac and Hugo linovers from Paris, where they died). I am thinking how to call them, maybe 2-fold perfect linovers? For the moment, I restrict the scope of linover to be an original artwork (usually handcrafted, but I can't rule out digital art). Do you think it's better to include in the definition reproductions (e.g. prints) of these artworks, if one day, I am to sell prints for people to collect the respective stamps / postmarks? Any thought and comment is mostly appreciated! P.S. I have put on a page on my personal website detailing the genesis of linover, to which you may refer. |
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Ryan
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Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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What I collect: If I have a catalogue for it, I collect it. And I have many catalogues ....
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Post by Ryan on Apr 16, 2021 3:39:43 GMT
Originally, I was planning on coining the word 'hanover' for 'handcrafted cover', but there was concern about how to pronounce the first syllable of 'hanover', plus many of my friends voted that this thing should bear my name. Although I am not a big fan of naming things after people (for I am awful with proper nouns), I would love to honour a democratic result. Certainly I think "linover" would work better from the simple standpoint of it being a name that would be easier to associate with your work (and more to the point, easier to successfully search for your work). "Hanover" would be conflated with the German city by that name, and a quick Google search came up with a couple hundred million hits on that name ... Ryan |
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zipper
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What I collect: Classic GB, QV, France Ceres/Napoleon, Classic U.S., Cinderella & Poster Stamps
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Post by zipper on Apr 16, 2021 9:15:52 GMT
Applauding...
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dorincard
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Posts: 1,450
What I collect: My focus is on Wild Mammals on maximum cards. Occasionally, I get or create maximum cards with other animals, or any other topic.
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Post by dorincard on Apr 16, 2021 14:23:51 GMT
Linda, how did I miss your posts? We should have communicated since your first post, in 2020.
We'll talk about maxicards (join my Facebook group), linovers, etc.
On FB, Ionel Muntean (Germany) is a Beethoven huge fan, and he could assist you with everything philatelic.
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Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Apr 17, 2021 6:16:37 GMT
Originally, I was planning on coining the word 'hanover' for 'handcrafted cover', but there was concern about how to pronounce the first syllable of 'hanover', plus many of my friends voted that this thing should bear my name. Although I am not a big fan of naming things after people (for I am awful with proper nouns), I would love to honour a democratic result. Certainly I think "linover" would work better from the simple standpoint of it being a name that would be easier to associate with your work (and more to the point, easier to successfully search for your work). "Hanover" would be conflated with the German city by that name, and a quick Google search came up with a couple hundred million hits on that name ... Ryan You are right, Ryan, though I still have trouble finding my own webpage via Google Search with the keyword 'linover' ...... |
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Ryan
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Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Posts: 2,720
What I collect: If I have a catalogue for it, I collect it. And I have many catalogues ....
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Post by Ryan on Apr 18, 2021 2:18:51 GMT
You are right, Ryan, though I still have trouble finding my own webpage via Google Search with the keyword 'linover' ...... Google's spider maybe crawls only once in a while over your site. Something like the New York Times website with its millions of views gets crawled and re-indexed multiple times a day but a small personal blog sees far fewer visits from the search bots. Ryan |
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Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Apr 18, 2021 15:41:11 GMT
Google's spider maybe crawls only one in a while over your site. Something like the New York Times website with its millions of views gets crawled and re-indexed multiple times a day but a small personal blog sees far fewer visits from the search bots. Ryan That makes sense! However, I was able to find this forum thread by googling 'Postal Art'. |
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Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Nov 22, 2021 19:12:52 GMT
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Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Nov 22, 2021 19:16:13 GMT
It's that time of the year again; I am looking for your assistance:  Can you please assist me in putting these Beethoven stamps on the two linovers I created featuring Beethoven's birth house in Bonn, Germany? What would be the mostly aesthetically appealing way of organising them? For the two larger sheets: should I keep the surrounding graphics or just cut off the stamps? Is there anyone who will be capable of travelling to Bonn on 17 December (Beethoven's baptism day) and who is willing to help me getting a postmark of Bonn? I will offer you an original artwork of mine (presumably another linover, but you can request anything) as a way of thanking you. |
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renden
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What I collect: World W collector with ++ interests in BNA (Canada etc) and USA
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Post by renden on Nov 22, 2021 19:54:08 GMT
@linda Very interesting thread - thank you !! Come back more often - René Canada .....and I will not be able to travel to Bonn  |
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Post by mdroth on Nov 22, 2021 21:11:09 GMT
Search the member database - I'd be surprised if we didn't have a member in Bonn. They may not read the board regularly - or realize your thread had any relevance to Bonn - but may be more than willing to help. I'd just send a private message & see what happens -
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Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Nov 23, 2021 7:47:43 GMT
Search the member database - I'd be surprised if we didn't have a member in Bonn. They may not read the board regularly - or realize your thread had any relevance to Bonn - but may be more than willing to help. I'd just send a private message & see what happens - Is there any easy way to search for members' location beside going through the 15 pages of member list one by one? I did try to Google search using keywords but only found one inactive German member in the introduction board. He hasn't responded to my message sent last year, so I assume he is not active anymore. |
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Post by mdroth on Nov 23, 2021 13:38:58 GMT
No - doesn't seem you can search easily by location. Keep asking - someone will respond. You can also look for a German-based forum or club? A dealer or someone you've bought from in Germany? Sorry - no bright ideas beyond that...
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ourdadsstamps
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Post by ourdadsstamps on Nov 28, 2021 16:51:30 GMT
Hi Linda, just came across this thread. Sorry I can't help you with the Bonn project but I just wanted to say what a brilliant idea you have and what amazing drawings you create. Keep posting the images.
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renden
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What I collect: World W collector with ++ interests in BNA (Canada etc) and USA
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Post by renden on Nov 28, 2021 18:57:58 GMT
salentin is from Germany and he is in the address list - a very regular contributor to this Forum !! René
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tomiseksj
Moderator 
Woodbridge, Virginia, USA
Posts: 6,265
What I collect: Worldwide stamps/covers, Cinderellas, Ohio Prepaid Sales Tax Receipts, U.S. WWII Ration ephemera
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Post by tomiseksj on Nov 28, 2021 20:23:58 GMT
Linda , you may be successful if you send your request directly to Deutsche Post, Post Tower, Bonn, Germany (ATTN: Post Division)
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dorincard
Member
Posts: 1,450
What I collect: My focus is on Wild Mammals on maximum cards. Occasionally, I get or create maximum cards with other animals, or any other topic.
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Post by dorincard on Nov 29, 2021 16:45:16 GMT
Ionel Muntean, Beethoven expert, told me a few days ago that he is contacting you on Facebook.
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Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Dec 1, 2021 22:51:27 GMT
Thank you all for your kind words and suggestion! I did get in touch with salentin and Ionel Muntean, and I am writing to the Deutsche Post in Bonn.
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Post by dgdecker on Dec 1, 2021 23:09:01 GMT
Linda,
This is the first time I have seen your thread. Somehow i missed missed it when you joined. A very belated welcome to the Forum. I greatly admire your wonderful work. I hope you succeed in getting your postmark. I really like the Beethoven works.
looking forward to other works you post.
David,
Ottawa, Canada
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swvl
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Posts: 523
What I collect: FDCs, plus some US modern and new issues. Topical interests include music, art, literature, baseball, space...
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Post by swvl on Jan 10, 2022 14:50:51 GMT
Thank you Linda for your kind words in the new members section! Your work here is beautiful, and the attention and care you've taken with the pairings of stamps, postmarks, and artwork is very impressive. I'm not nearly at your level of artistic skill, but it looks like we do share some common interests - music and literature on stamps are among my favorite themes.
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darkormex
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Swinging through Switzerland and getting tied up in Thailand
Posts: 2,145
What I collect: The World...just printing and mounting as I go...call me crazy!
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Post by darkormex on Jan 10, 2022 23:54:09 GMT
Welcome
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seegod1
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Mostly lurking these days, but enjoying everyone's input!
Posts: 164
What I collect: Canada, Cats, Soccer, Religion, Royalty, Titanic, Stamps on Stamps, Number Ones
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Post by seegod1 on Jun 6, 2022 10:50:28 GMT
Hey Linda! Carmen here, coming to see more of your wonderful artwork! I don't know if you answered this question in the thread and I just missed it, but how long does it generally take you to do one of these beautiful pieces of art?
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Linda
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Ex-mathematician turned visual artist and touring cyclist to bike across Canada, Europe, Japan etc.
Posts: 1,261
What I collect: Mostly Canadian and European stamps about art / science / landscape
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Post by Linda on Jul 10, 2022 15:14:25 GMT
Hey Linda! Carmen here, coming to see more of your wonderful artwork! I don't know if you answered this question in the thread and I just missed it, but how long does it generally take you to do one of these beautiful pieces of art? Opps, sorry Carmen, I only saw your question today. The time depends on each drawing and how good I was at drawing portrait at the time. It ranges from 6h47m (the Kafka cover) to 37h05m (the first Cohen cover). The first cover I created for my European tour was dedicated to Schubert. At that time I haven't drawn portrait in a long time, so I ended up spending 26h51m on the project. As I got more and more skilled at drawing portrait, the second cover for Mozart 'only' required 19h16m. I don't have anything that required more than 20 hours again until I did the Cohen cover. In general, I would say that ~10 hours seem to be the average. |
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