Libellus – Avant-garde journal, edited by Guy Schraenen

Libellus: A Monthly Mail-Art Publication.

Nos. 1 (October 1980) through 12 (October 1981) (all published).

Project by A.S.P.C. and I.C.C. Antwerp on occasion of the “International Mail Art Festival”, 1980-1981.

12 Numbers each issue 8 pages. 29,5 x 21 cm each issue.

sold

Produced and edited by Guy Schraenen and illustrated with original mail art by international artists. This publication was a one year Mail-Art project which ended on the date of the Antwerp International Mail-Art Festival. The whole magazine is full of reproduced mail-art. A complete run in twelve issues of the avant-garde journal, edited by Guy Schraenen, conceived of as a 12-part project leading up to the “Antwerp International Mail-Art Festival” held in October 1981, with contributions by many of the most important European practitioners of the movement, including dramatic and quirky juxtapositions of text and images documenting various projects, both individual and collective, profusely illustrated throughout. The initial issue also contains brief paragraphs and drawings calling for submissions in the form of directory listings, postage stamp drawings, audio cassettes, videos, postcards, and other documents. Subsequent issues contain listings of all of the international submissions received during the past month, with highlighted selections reproduced within the pages of Libellus. Contributors whose work was printed in the journal include Alberto Harrigan, Grupo Texto Poético, Pawel Petasz, Damso Ogaz, Dan Berber, G.A. Cavellini, Daniele Ciullini, Christoph Mach, Vittore Baroni, Piotr Rypson, Herman de Vries, Dick Higgins, Árpád Tóth, Teresinka Pereira, Falves Silva, Gunter Ruch, Michele Perfetti, Edgardo Antonio Vigo, Klaus Groh, Lourdes Castro, Robert Filliou, Endre Tot, Carlo Pittore, and many others. Some of the issues seem to be focused on one certain type of submission, while others contain a wider variety of types of artwork. Issue no. 3 is dedicated to invitations, no. 5 contains small notecards and postcards, and no. 7 is primarily postage and rubber stamps. Issue no. 8 also contains two supplementary sheets of original perforated postage stamps, printed in red and blue, with 48 stamps to each sheet.

This set is in mint condition.