Poste-restante letter 1970

Editor: Here we have Stanley Brouwn's "Poste-restante letter" from 1970, a piece of typography on paper. It's really quite minimal and conceptual, and it immediately made me think about networks and systems. How would you interpret this work? Curator: From a materialist perspective, this work is compelling because it highlights the usually invisible infrastructure that supports communication. Consider the labour involved in printing this instruction, the postal networks Brouwn implicates, and the potential consumption of paper and ink by the respondent. The very act of mailing a letter becomes a performance, dependent on these often-overlooked processes. What does the instruction "any city on earth is o.k." imply to you about those systems? Editor: I guess it's highlighting how ubiquitous postal services are, or were then – the vast network spanning the globe that we take for granted. So, the 'artwork' is less the text itself and more about…activating the postal system? Curator: Precisely! Brouwn redirects our focus from aesthetic contemplation to the material conditions and social interactions that underpin communication. Think of the sender’s labour in choosing the city, addressing the envelope… and, perhaps, their reasons for choosing a particular place. Editor: It's almost like he's outsourcing the creative act, relying on a material exchange. Fascinating! I had initially considered it as a somewhat poetic statement but, you're right; examining production gives it such depth. Curator: It encourages us to reconsider art’s boundaries and to see artistic potential in the everyday material world around us. Editor: I'll never look at my mail the same way again. Thanks!