Fort
Myers Officer In Charge Phillip Fleener (left) Rauschenberg Gallery Curator
Jade Dellinger.
Remember
when people wrote postcards to friends and family to share vacation memories
and convey that all-important "Wish you were here" message?
In Fort Myers, FL, a new art exhibit takes the concept of postcards to an
entirely new level. Postcards for Democracy, currently running
through Aug. 8 at Southwestern State College's Rauschenberg Gallery, celebrates
the U.S. Postal Service and its essential role in America's elections.
"What we saw with all these people mailing in cards was a
lot of people also realized in that process just how much fun it was to sit
down and make a card and send it in," says co-creator Beatie Wolfe.
"We just wanted to bring awareness," adds co-creator Mark Mothersbaugh.
"We weren't hearing anybody speaking up for the Post Office, so we said,
'Well dang it, we're gonna do it!'...We have many reasons to be
thankful. We want the Post Office to stay around."
When guests enter the exhibit, they see a giant mural
depicting an envelope, a self-painted mural of the show's co-creators, along
with thousands of postcards sent from people over the world. The postcards,
decorated with various topics, from Black Lives Matter and the environment
to feminism and kindness, are the exhibit's focus.
“In a sense; it allows people to express how they are feeling or
what they stand for on a simple postcard," says Fort Myers OIC Phillip
Fleener. "It also proves people do care about and love their post
office."
For more information, visit postartfordemocracy.com.
Postcards
for Democracy co-creators Mark Mothersbaugh (left) and Beatie Wolfe.
