Postcards
After Santa Anita and Sanjukta Vikas both enjoyed seeing the photographs of each other, the next logical step was to put them in touch. I presented each household in Santa Anita with a set of postcards and invited them to write to the people of SVC.
Sharing Histories and Hopes
The members of Santa Anita wrote about how they came to the land they are on and sent warm wishes of solidarity for the struggles of the people of SVC. Many of the notes carry a tone of intimacy and familiarity. The postcards offer a potent way for these people to share their experiences, enriching their perspectives on local concerns by hearing how others who have encountered similar struggles cope. These postcards will be delivered to SVC in the form of translated booklets, with the original handwriten Spanish and a Nepali rendition. The booklets can become household objects and historical documents to be revisited.
Sharing Histories and Hopes
The members of Santa Anita wrote about how they came to the land they are on and sent warm wishes of solidarity for the struggles of the people of SVC. Many of the notes carry a tone of intimacy and familiarity. The postcards offer a potent way for these people to share their experiences, enriching their perspectives on local concerns by hearing how others who have encountered similar struggles cope. These postcards will be delivered to SVC in the form of translated booklets, with the original handwriten Spanish and a Nepali rendition. The booklets can become household objects and historical documents to be revisited.
Their responses will be braught to Santa Anita in May of 2008.
The Postcard Format
The postcard is a potent format for exchanging these messages because it turns an artifact of colonialism on its head. Postcards became prominent with the standarization of international postage systems in the late 19th century and the profusion of international travel by middle class people of the developed world. This tradition continues today with folkloric and exotifying depections of local culture. By chosing empowered, contextualized images for the postcards, and opening the space for dialogue, we subvert the colonial origins.
The Postcard Format
The postcard is a potent format for exchanging these messages because it turns an artifact of colonialism on its head. Postcards became prominent with the standarization of international postage systems in the late 19th century and the profusion of international travel by middle class people of the developed world. This tradition continues today with folkloric and exotifying depections of local culture. By chosing empowered, contextualized images for the postcards, and opening the space for dialogue, we subvert the colonial origins.
