In 1869, some genius in Austria invented the “non-postal”—cards, ones where you had to actually put the stamp on yourself. Within a year, everyone was doing it. Greetings from everywhere were being sent to friends and relatives around the world, often with the slightly passive-aggressive note “Wish you were here.” But Salt Lake artist and filmmaker Trent Harris still prefers postcards. The big difference—he sends them to himself and he often draws them himself.
So the image may not represent the town or beach or mountains where Trent’s has been traveling. He may not have traveled anywhere, except in his head. Then again, head trips are some of the best trips of all. “I always loved getting postcards,” says Harris. “ I loved the stamp, the address, the picture on the front. It takes time and thought to send someone a postcard.
“Texts and emails have no magic at all,” he continues. “A few years ago I realized that the best way to get a postcard was to send one to myself. Now, I have a whole collection. It is a history of my thoughts.”
Scroll down for more of Trent’s weird cards. See all of our arts coverage here.
