The
recipient of this card is a religious person. It is intended
for
her birthday but there is no birthday message because, eh, the Lord
works in myserious ways, in'nit? The arrival of the card coincides
within a few days of her birthday so she'll be expected to put two and
two together.             Creation. Universe. Earth. Rejoice. That is what I hope to convey with these recognizable images. It's a two-page pop-up card. The last page is a simple quickly executed watercolor. The cover and the first page background are Hubble captures. The envelope is made to fit out of regular card stock. The first mechanism on the first page is a simple hinged tab anchored on opposite sides of the central fold. The left side of the card mechanically pulls a tab out from behind a cover on the right side of the fold then pushes it back under when closed. The cover duplicates the pattern of the background so it functions as a disguised pocket for the moving tab, upon which is affixed an image of Michaelangelo's Sistine God that slides out and points to the center of the background galaxy then tucks back in. The second mechanism on the second page is an asymmetric 'V' that stands up a row of children with their arms raised, a jesture that has signified 'rejoice' for at least five millenia, then folds back down flatly when closed. By asymmetric, I mean that one side of the V is longer than the other as a √, while the angle of both sides are identical. So then, two simple mechanisms that could have easily been on the same page, but instead I chose to position God first in the universe as creator, then as the holder of our lives as his children. This bears on why I tend to acknowledge birthdays without mentioning them, and certainly not the celebrant's age. What would be the point of reminding the people I love about their mortality, about the brevity of our lives in the face of eternity? Careless and simple as this card is, I do believe it manages to convey all that. Plus the recipient could recycle the card if they chose to, but they never do. |