Postcards may be small, but they've been big since the 1850s. "Postcards mean things fun and fundamental--to almost everyone," Jeremy Cooper explains in the gorgeous, surprising Artists' Postcards. Artists have been making postcard art as long as they've been around, but especially since 1980--largely because it's cheap and they can reach a wide audience.
After some background material about the gradual rise of this art form, Cooper breaks down contemporary artists' postcards into various categories, from original artist-designed cards to alterations of existing cards. He also covers composite pieces, collages, boxed sets and mail art, with additional focus on political and polemical work and promotional cards.
Many of the artists represented are not well known; the postcards thus serve as tiny, affordable advertisements for their art. The range of images and styles is substantial--more than 400 illustrations, most in color--as is the wit and creativity they demonstrate. --Tom Lavoie, former publisher