History of the postcard and the art of collage

Collage on an old post card "Andréa"

The Epic of the Postcard: From Postal Innovation to Art Object

Did you know that the postcard wasn't created to send holiday souvenirs, but to simplify administrative exchanges? Let's look back at the fascinating history of this small cardboard rectangle which, from a simple communication tool, has become my preferred creative medium.

1869: The birth of a quiet revolution

It all began in Austria with the first official "correspondence card." It was devoid of any image and cost less than a letter. When it arrived in France in 1872, it caused a scandal: many considered it "indecent" that the postman could read the contents of the messages.

The map's structure has also undergone an amusing technical evolution:

• Before 1904: The back was strictly reserved for the address. Writing on it was forbidden! Correspondents had to scribble their messages directly on the image or in the white margins.

Mademoiselle Berthe Parc monceau

• After 1904: The "divided back" revolution. The administration authorized the division of the back of the postcard in two: the address on the right, the message on the left. The image finally became completely free, giving free rein to illustrators and photographers.

Cannes "Le port"

1900-1914: The Golden Age of "paper SMS"

Before radio and television, the postcard was the number one medium. It was used for everything:

• Instantaneity: At the beginning of the 20th century in Paris, mail delivery was so frequent that one could send an invitation in the morning for a dinner that same evening, and receive the reply in the afternoon!

• A social reflection: They document fashions, events, and even war. During the 1914-1918 conflict, despite censorship, it remained the only vital link between the front and families.

"Baccarat" 14 18

"Raon l'Etape" 14 18

Postcards as collectibles : "Cartophilia" (postcard collecting) emerged during this period.

• Accessible art: Great illustrators create series that transform these cards into true miniature works of art.

"Evian les bains"

Decline and rebirth through matter

With the arrival of the telephone in the 1920s, followed by personal photography and digital technology, the postcard lost its practical function. Yet, it survives thanks to its physicality . Receiving a postcard today means receiving a tangible object that has traveled, bearing writing, a postmark, and a genuine intention.

If I chose the old postcard for my collages, it is because it is much more than a piece of yellowed cardboard. It is a fragment of life , a tangible trace of a moment that mattered to someone a century ago.

In my work, I use these outdated materials to establish a dialogue between the past and my own imagination. Behind each stamp and each scribbled word lie anonymous "little stories." Through collage, I deconstruct the original image to offer it a new perspective.

• Poetic anachronism: I divert the original meaning to transform a classical landscape or a frozen portrait into a surreal and contemporary scene.

• The texture of time: The paper's grain, the damp stains, the wear on the corners... all these details are my invisible collaborators. They bring a depth and a soul that no modern paper could offer.

Nuageux

"Monte Carlo"

Intervening on these old postcards is, for me, a way of liberating the memories they carry. By giving them this freer and more unusual second life, the past is just waiting to be reinvented to surprise us anew.