Dendritic Exchange

The title of this post makes it sound as though I have participated in some sort of medical procedure or scientific partnership.

In fact, I've just done a fun mail art exchange!

Awhile back, I shared with you the process of creating decorative papers using the dendritic painting method I watched at Atomic Shrimp.

Jewels, of Just Tickety-Boo, who first shared the video with me, initiated a mail art swap using the results of our dendritic painting experiments.

From the beginning, I imagined the shape of a person's head made out of the dendritic papers, since they look like neurons or nerve endings.  Then, I wanted to use inspiration from the wonderful collage and mail artist, Lenore Tawney, so I flipped through the book Signs on the Wind, and came away with this postcard to send to Jewels:

In return, Jewels sent me this postcard (tucked inside a fireworks-emblazoned envelope!):

Her use of the dendritic painting is much more subtle than mine, and you can definitely see how it adds to the layers of her background:

I love the vintage woman image--I have been scouring books and magazines for these kinds of vintage images, as I'm finding images of women and their roles from the 1930s to the 1950s very inspiring right now.

As an added compliment, Jewels told me that she chose the dictionary definition of the word "cheery" because she imagines it to be a word that describes me.  I certainly try to hang on to my cheeriness, so this is much appreciated!

I definitely feel some pressure when it comes to doing a mail art exchange, especially when there is an "assignment," such as using the dendritic papers.  But it is so very satisfying once the project is completed, and I have another piece of mail art from an online friend to add to my collection!