For more than thirty years I’ve been mailing collaged, holiday cards at the end of the year. I would take a postcard and cover it with various stickers or other pictures or text found in magazines and add a catchy phrase linking it to the holidays.
About twenty years ago, these cards took on a GertrudeandAlice twist. The Ladies from rue de Fleurus became the focus of the cards and the annual greeting, with its usual irreverent humor, seems to have become something that friends looked forward to receiving each December. (Some of my friends have told me that they’ve kept all of the cards over the years, ready for a retrospective exhibition!)
Card of Holidays Past 2003
Card of Holidays Past 2004
This year for the first time, the card is being sent electronically via this blog. The decision to do this was purely one of necessity as I am in Australia and was unable to get cards designed, printed, written and mailed before I left.
The collaged picture that I’m using this year was used four years ago, but the imagined dialogue between GertrudeandAlice playing off of Gertrude’s explanation of her writing with the term “continuous present,” is purely card 2009/10.
And here it is:
Card of Holiday Present(s) 2009
Alice
Where is my gift?
Gertrude
You don’t remember gifting?
Alice
No.
Gertrude
When this you see remember me.
Alice
No, no.
Gertrude
Oh, oh, oh a gift being given. Much gifting being given.
Alice
And?
Gertrude
And for you. The gifting to you is continuous presents.
Alice
Oh.
Gertrude
Yes. Happy Holidays!
Alice
Oh yes, Happy Holidays!
Wishing all of you the happiest of holidays and the continuous presents of health and joy in the New Year!
Hans
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