Existing comment:
Ryosuke Cohen (b. 1948, Japanese)
Mail art to John Evans, 2002 (ongoing project since 1985)
Ryosuke Cohen is a Japanese mail artist who has been involved in the network since the 1980s. This collage sent to John Evans is part of his Brain Cell project, an ongoing compilation of artistamps, stickers, rubber stamps, and drawings from contributors all over the world, demonstrating a diverse assortment of subject matter. The reverse side lists the names and addresses of artists who submitted works to this edition, the 541st in the series. Brain Cell, which Cohen began in 1985, aptly demonstrates the collaborative nature of the international mail art network, which he likens to "the structure of a brain through a microscope . . . thousands of neurons clung and piled up together." Artists submit their images and objects through the mail to Cohen, who then assembles collages and sends silkscreen copies back to the contributors. Brain Cell #1,000 was completed in December 2017 and the project continues to this day, with over six thousand participants from more than eighty countries thus far.
-- Jessica Perry |