Briefkaart aan Philip Zilcken before 1921

This carte postale was made by Rose Imel, though the exact date is unknown. It's interesting to see how the artist included her profession, "artiste peintre", within the address itself. The handwriting sprawls across the card, in a sepia tone, with ink bleeding a little into the paper, giving it a tactile quality. The stamp is a burst of figuration, a woman striding forward, an emblem of France. The circular 'Paris' stamp is a target-like shape, and echoes the address itself as the target. There's a tension here, between the official and the personal, the formal and the expressive. Imel is writing to someone, but she's also declaring herself, claiming her identity as an artist within the very fabric of communication. It reminds me of the work of the painter Agnes Martin, who's delicate mark making also suggests a quiet but resolute affirmation. Art's like that, an ongoing conversation, a letter across time.