THE EX POSTAL FACTO LECTURES

An afternoon of panel discussions related to correspondence art takes place on Sunday, February 16th at the San Francisco Public Library as part of the Ex Postal Facto conference. The lecture series is part of the closing events related to the three-day conference.

Hosted by the San Francisco Public Library’s Book Arts and Special Collections, the Ex Postal Facto lectures feature luminaries of the West Coast correspondence art scene and contemporary artists working within the genre. The first panel of the day, “A Brief History of West Coast Mail Art”, features speakers Lowell Darling (visual/conceptual artist), Leslie Caldera of Los Angeles (correspondence artist), Carl Chew of Seattle (artistamp maker) and Anna Banana of Canada (artistamp maker). The panel will be moderated by San Francisco writer and visual artist John Held, Jr.

A second lecture titled "Artistamps and Their Makers: Seeing the World in Miniature" features artists working in the field of faux philatelics, also known as "artistamps". The work of James Cline (Founding Postmaster, Black Rock City Post Office), James Felter (Postes Mraur), Harley (Terra Candella), and Ginny Lloyd (Gina Lotta Artistamp Museum) will be highlighted. The discussion will be moderated by correspondence artist and Ex Postal Facto organizer Jennie Hinchcliff (Red Letter Day).

The lectures are the culminating event of the Ex Postal Facto conference -- a celebration of correspondence art, letter writing, and faux philatelics. Held February 14 - 16 at various venues throughout San Francisco, Ex Postal Facto brings together “Networkers” from across North America – artists whose primary artistic medium is the postal system, and whose goal is to encourage open dialogue via the mail.

Schedule for Sunday, February 16^th, 2014:

1:00pm – 200pm: “A Brief History of West Coast Mail Art"

2:30pm – 3:30pm: "Artistamps and Their Makers: Seeing the World in Miniature"

3:45pm – 4:30pm: public reception for the panelists in the Latino-Hispanic Community Meeting Room (across the lobby from the Koret Auditorium).

--During the reception, Ex Postal Facto passport stamping will be available. Information about obtaining a passport for the weekend can be found at the Ex Postal Facto website. (In order to receive a commemorative stamp, attendees must have an Ex Postal Facto passport).

Sponsored by the Marjorie G. and Carl W. Stern

Book Arts & Special Collections Center

Celebrating 50 years,1964-2014