Events > Public Art

Apr. - 01 May 2003

some days are better than others Mail Art Project by MITCH ROBERTSON

Recipients of a recent mailer from Art Metropole were treated to a special mail art project by Mitch Robertson. Robertson created a stamp that read “some days are better than others”. Envelopes were stamped on the outside but no additional information was given. For those who have been wondering – the mystery is now solved.

Some Days Are Better Than Others is an ongoing project conceived with the purpose of disseminating the simple message of the title through various forms of advertising. In collaboration with Art Metropole, a self inking stamp was made of the artist’s handwritten version which was stamped onto the outside of each envelope of the gallery’s mailing list. The piece gave no indication of its purpose and no mention was made of it within the mailout information. In choosing a blue ink which looked like a felt tip pen, the hope was that readers would believe it was a message written specifically to them by someone at Art Metropole. With this direct “personalized” connection between the sender and receiver, the expectation was that the vague yet mildly contemplative message would be considered for as long as it took to open the envelope.

MITCH ROBERTSON is a conceptually based artist using photography, video, sculpture, the Internet, installations and drawing to create work that both celebrates and condemns the intertwined paths of tourism, globalization and consumerism. In his five years since art school, Robertson has shown regularly across Canada and New Zealand as well as in the USA, Switzerland, N. Ireland, England, Scotland and Australia. His projects range in scale from small artist multiples to installations like his 24ft motorhome museum.

Art Metropole thanks the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the City of Toronto through the Toronto Arts Council, as well as private donors for their support.