Accession Number1981/1.310
TitleDoo Da Post (stamped and cancelled manilla envelope)
Artist(s)Edward F. HigginsArtist NationalityAmerican (North American)Object Creation Date1980Medium & Supportmixed media on paperDimensions 9 1/16 in x 12 in (23 cm x 30.5 cm)
Credit LineMuseum PurchaseSubject matterHiggins 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 DescriptionThis 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.
Primary Object ClassificationMixed MediaCollection AreaModern and ContemporaryRightsIf you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit
http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Keywords
Text-based Art
abstraction
envelopes
mail artists
modern and contemporary art
mythology (literary genre)
portraits
postage stamps
reproductions