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Mail Art by Dave Wade


UMVA Gallery at PMC Offers February

Mail Art Cards On-Line Fundraising Auction      


Portland, ME - Like most other things in 2021, the auction of Mail Art Cards, received by the Union of Maine Visual Artists (UMVA) Portland Gallery inside the Portland Media Center, 516 Congress St. in Portland, was delayed in both December and January, because of Covid issues.  But beginning on Thursday, February 17, 2022 at 12:00 PM and continuing to Tuesday, February 22, 2022 12:00 PM (EST) UMVA will be offering an on-line auction of the cards from not only Maine artists but from artists in other states and countries.  The URL for the auction is https://www.charityauctionstoday.com/auctions/UMVA--Mail-Art-Fundraiser-2022-29180.  Money raised will go towards keeping the gallery open through 2022. 

 

Since one of the founders of the Union of Maine Visual Artists was also a renowned Mail Artist - Carlo Pittore  (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_Pittore), it was decided to go with a mail art show when the January 2021 show couldn't go forward at the last moment.  Last December, UMVA asked artists to create postcard-sized mail art and photograph them for the on-line show on the blog - https://umvaportlandgallery.blogspot.com/ from January 1 to 29, 2021.  The theme of the January show was "Your Vision of the Year 2021".  The cards were then mailed to the gallery and saved for a fundraising auction, later in the year - but that never happened in 2021.  You can get a preview of the auction by going to the blog: https://umvaportlandgallery.blogspot.com/2020/12/visions-of-year-2021.html

 

If you're lucky enough to be the high bidder on a piece of mail art, you will pay through the website and let UMVA know if you can pick it up in person, or if you'd rather have it mailed to you.  If auction winners are local, they can arrange with Lesley MacVane by either calling her at 207-272-5792 or emailing her at Lesleymac@portlandmedia.org to pick up the cards on the following dates/times:  Feb 23rd from 9 am to 12 pm, Feb 24th from 11 am to 1 pm, Feb 28th from 10 am to 2 pm or March 1st from 10 am to 4 pm.  Please remember to bring proof of vaccination and to wear a properly fitted mask. 

 

Participating artists include: Amy Bellezza, Andre Pace, Anne Strout, Ann Tracy, Berna from Brazil, Chris Allen, Dave Wade, Janice Moore, Joanne Tarlin, John Ripton, Joyce Ellen Weinstein, Kris Onuf, Lesley MacVane, Robert Matejcek, Roland Salazar, Susan Smith and the elusive Victor F.

 

The Union of Maine Visual Artists is an artist-run, non-profit organization, dedicated to upholding the dignity of artists and creating positive social change through the arts.  The UMVA represents visual artists statewide in all fields of endeavor and welcomes those who support contemporary artists in Maine.  For more information, please go to the UMVA website:  http://www.theumva.org.

 

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