In an examination of the ability of personal correspondence to provide a document of one’s life, the artist creates a narrative of her life between 1965 and 1979 by reproducing only the first sentence of every letter that she received during this period. The letter-excerpts appear in their original Serbian as well as the English translation.
In contemporary culture the rediscovered troves of the personal notes and correspondence of artists or historical figures can garner a good deal of academic and public attention as they are assumed to provide great insight into their senders or receivers.
The letters that artist Vincent Van Gogh exchanged primarily with his brother Theo for example are considered to be so integral to understanding the artist and his work that they are often exhibited in museums alongside his drawings and paintings.
According to Marina Abramovic, other artists such as Marcel Duchamp created rituals around the opening or reception of their letters and in the case of Jean Tinguely, burned correspondence unopened. Edition of 1000