The Wisconsin Project: Found: Indian Crossing, Waupaca, WI

12.10.14

Found: Indian Crossing, Waupaca, WI

Found: Indian Crossing, Chain O'Lakes, Waupaca, Wis. "The Killarneys of America" in the Heart of Wisconsin.
Natural Color Postcard made in U.S.A. by E. C. Kropp Co. circa 1947


Found: Indian Crossing, Chain O'Lakes, Waupaca, Wis. "The Killarneys of America" in the Heart of Wisconsin. 23 crystal-clear spring-fed lakes, good fishing from the lordly muskellunge to the lowly blue gill, a vacation paradise, swimming, boating, hiking, riding, tennis and golf. Natural Color Postcard made in U.S.A. by E. C. Kropp Co. circa 1947. Printed with fountain pen on back: "Hi Mink, Everything all ship-shape. Got rid of the "varmints" with a D.D.T. Bomb. Had more fun squirting it around. Water is warm at first, then cooling. I'm sure I'll get my quota filled of freckles and sunburn. What a Mess I'll be then. Waiting for our dinner hour. Eating the evening meals out. A real change for us wicked women! Thinking of you. Love - Tommica" Postmarked Waupaca, Wis. August 25, 1947 9:30 AM

The Wisconsin vacation land described on postcards often contrasts with the handwritten reportage on the backside. On this card, the sender refers to "squirting" DDT (an insecticide that emerged during WWII) around to "get rid of the varmints" while accepting the inevitable sunburn and freckles.The 1920s era Indian Crossing Casino depicted on the front remains in near original condition due to the dedication in the past 30 years of owners Maria and Bill Belke. Casino means "gathering place" not gambling place.

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THE WISCONSIN PROJECT

Our research-driven Wisconsin Project contemplates the rooted-ness and state-of-mind resulting from inhabiting a single place, our native Wisconsin, for a long time. Through critiquing postcard views both made and found, we learn a great deal about past and present Wisconsin. We began making postcard views of the places immediately around our studio and on our drives around Wisconsin in about 2008. We use the vintage postcard film format and print the cards in palladium and cyanotype. By communicating details of a specific place, seeming to register only marginally on the national radar, the project seeks to bring audiences into a Wisconsin mental space. Some in the art world would argue that the Midwest, particularly Wisconsin, makes for banal “fly over” subject matter. Our project challenges that by finding meaning in the ordinary and inviting audiences to examine, dialog, and reflect on the particular emotional quality of the idiosyncrasies of place and the perceptions of those both inside and outside of it. Sometimes distant memories are involved and a longing for a time now gone. Wisconsin’s glacier inflected landscape and proximity to the Great Lakes creates an exotic arena for living that informs our project. The life cycle plays out and rural and urban ruins serve as monuments to existences as people, places, and ideas surface then vanish. Ultimately, we aim to grapple with complex perceptions of Wisconsin ranging from nostalgic, romantic, and idealized--as depicted on myriad real photo postcard and standard tourist postcards--to mysterious, dark, and Gothic as conveyed in works of art and literature such as Michael Lesy's "Wisconsin Death Trip" book and Werner Herzog's "Stroszek" film. The project culminated in a residency with workshops and community collaborations and the installation "We Go From Where We Know" at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center 10.13.2013-3.7.2014 and later the Harvestore Bandshell for Fermentation Fest in 10.2014. The blog continues the exploration of postcards.