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Doo Da Post (stamped and cancelled manilla envelope)

Edward F. Higgins

Artwork Details

Doo Da Post (stamped and cancelled manilla envelope)
1980
Edward F. Higgins
mixed media on paper
9 1/16 in x 12 in (23 cm x 30.5 cm)
Museum Purchase
1981/1.310

Description

Subject Matter:

Higgins received his MFA in painting and printmaking in 1976. He collected stamps as a child, and began making stamps and postcards in the mid 1970s. The refrain "Doo Da" in "Doo Da Post" is borrowed from the song Camp Town Ladies or Zippety Doo Da; Higgins uses a winged-nut as his logo. Seattle stamp-maker Carl T. Chew provided guidance at the beginning of Higgins' career. Stamp art is largely rooted in communication and stamp artists often send their work to fellow stamp artists.

Physical Description:

This work is a sealed manilla envelope covered in various artist-made postage and printed stamps. Printed on the envelope are the following phrases and items: "STAMP ART", "FIRST DAY OF ISSUE", "DOO-DA POST JUL 24 1980 N.Y. BRANCH", "DOO-DA JUL 24 1980 CHICAGO", Chinese Characters, "ART MAIL COMMEMORATIVE", "DOO-DA POST- 153 LUDLOW, N.Y.C. NY 10000 USA", "MADE IN USA", a two-tailed siren and a winged-nut. The stamps include images of a portrait of a man in a hat, 3 stamps of the Statue of Liberty, a triangular stamp of corn kernels, the Greek god Hermes, Leonardo Da Vinci and a landscape with blue water, green hills, and a white plane overhead.

Usage Rights:

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