Ode to the Typewriter

James gave me a pre WW2 Smith Corona Skywriter this summer. I have wanted an old one  for some time, believing that having one in my possession would enhance my mail art participation. The "R" was bent and I finally found an elderly gentleman that fixed it in Indianapolis. [Dropping it off on the south side of town in a janitorial business was an adventure in and of itself.]

The interest in this analog activity is fascinating and more and more typewriters are cropping up. Renting a typewriter at a hotel is now a possibility in West Texas as are communal writing events on vintage machines in Seattle. Here are some artists that feature them in their sculptures, installations, and photographs.

Julie Wills, Words, 2011 [coal, beeswax, rabbit fur, thread]

 Heidi Kumao, Letter Never Sent, 2000 (video projection on typewriter)

Liza Lou, Trailer (Detail), 1998-2000

 Nik Mirus

Christophe Dillinger, Typewriter Series [typed directly onto 6x6 negatives]

Robert Cumming, Bad Night for Writing, 1974

Allyson Klutenkamper, Kafka, 2012

Kate Stone, The Anne Frank Room is Upstairs from the series At the Seams,