Art Friday: The dying art of letter writing


Art Friday: The dying art of letter writing

How many mothers have waited anxiously for letters to arrive from their sons fighting in some distant war far from home?

How many lovers have written to each other sharing their passion and desires?

How many sisters have written to one another though the centuries, sharing their day-to-day lives, their joys and tragedies?

How many letters have been written to share births, marriages and deaths?

How many letters have been kept, read and reread from those who are no longer with us?

Whilst the internet has made correspondence quick and simple, there is nothing like a box full of old letters, crumpled and tear-stained.  As Johann Wolfgang von Goethe once said "Letters are among the most significant memorial a person can leave behind them".  How true.

May these paintings remind us of a time almost lost, a time when we treasured writing to and receiving letters from love ones.


"The word that is heard perishes, 
but the letter that is written remains"
(Anon)

by Henriette Browne
By Etienne Adolphe Piot (1850-1910)

By Pietro Antonio Rotari (1707-1762)
by Otto Scholderer (1834-1902)
By Julian Alden Weir (1852-1919)
By Adelaide Labille-Guiard
by Alfred Stevens
By Henry Lejeune
By Gianni Strino
by Raimundo de Madrazo y Garreta (1841-1920)
By Winslow Homer
By Alfredo Rodriguez



Does this inspire you to write a letter - just think of the joy it will bring someone far away.


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Comments

  1. This collection of pictures is just wonderful. I was planning to name a favorite, but couldn't - I liked each of them for different reasons. I seldom write letters but I do send cards and write messages in them. When I was a teen, I had a boyfriend who had moved away to go to college. Those were my letter writing days! And, the anticipation of receiving a letter was so exciting. This was before internet and cell phones, so letters were it. Now I have a friend who lives in another state, but of course we can email, text and talk on the phone whenever we want. But every once in a while, I send her an actual several-page letter. I can't tell you how much this seems to mean to her.

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    1. So glad you like them - they were fun to find and interestedly, no shortage of paintings in this topic.

      Cards are fun to receive to especially those that you can tell the person has put a lot of effort into selecting.

      Have a wonderful weekend.

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  2. Absolutely adore these paintings. I love letter writing, I always have and I do continue to write. Not as much as I used to, but this is a good reminder. Have a great weekend Jo. :)

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    1. I use to write a lot when I was younger, but I just don't have the time anymore - to many things to do and not enough hours. Perhaps when I am older (e.g. retired) I might get back into it.

      Have a lovely weekend. Cold and wet here.

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  3. I do wish more people would write letters, but I think the problem is that so many have got out of the way of it, and when they do some writing, their hand hurts and they give up! Waaaaaaah!
    I absolutely love letters in the mail, nothing gives me that warm fuzzy feeling that keeps me buzzing quite like it! It is far more personal, full of character, etc than email or an sms. Of course I like sms too, the speed of it is great, but it isn't so warming really... =(
    love,
    Bets

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    1. I am glad I could give you a warm fuzzy feeling the other day. I'm not as good at writing by hand anymore as I have become so reliant on computers and spell check. I can remember many a Sunday afternoon sitting around your grandfather's kitchen table writing letters to my cousins and pen friends. It was such a wonderful time.

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  4. I especially love the first and second pieces, and the one with the lady in white with the white feather (her head and legs aren't showing), and also the old man standing reading the letter.
    I love receiving letters and also quite enjoy writing letters when I get around to it - it's a sad thing to be losing letter writing. I must continue to try to encourage my children to write letters.

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    1. Do you think the third painting looks like your daughter. I thought of her the moment I saw it. it is also one of my favourites. I wish I wrote more, but I just don't have the time or energy to do those long letters I once did when young!!

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  5. Dear Jo, I love to write letters and I love getting them in the mail! I think we need to start writing more as they are so special and have way more meaning then a Email!
    Loved the pictures so mush! I hope you are well! Did some sewing yesterday. Thinking of you ;o)
    Roxy

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    1. I do love receiving letters, but I am not that timely in responding. I am also no longer very good at hand writing - I use the computer almost all the time these days it is hard work writing by hand.

      I am about to do some sewing in a few moments!

      Blessings

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  6. I enjoy letter writing enormously. I have a few friends in America that despite us being in contact via the internet we still write to each other. It's so wonderful to get something in the mail that isn't a bill from time to time ;-)

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    1. I thought I would write to letters this morning and it felt good!! I should do it far more often.

      Completely agree - letters are much nicer than bills!! However these days, even my bills arrive in my inbox of my emails.

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  7. Such sweetness in those drawings! I am a letter-writer. I try to keep it alive, and you've reminded me to keep going. I'd love to get more letters, and there's more a chance of that if I keep writing. ;)

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    1. It is such a delight to receive a letter or card in the post - one doesn't need to write an essay to bring joy to someone else. Sadly I am not very good at this but am trying to increase my correspondences.

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