Collaborators
Ingrid Ekstrom (California)
Amy Smith (California)
Ellen Lafferty (California)
Jenny Kwon (California)
Genia Gilbert (California)
Delivery Sequence
Ingrid sends to Amy
Amy sends to Ellen
Ellen sends to Jenny
Jenny sends to Genia
Genia sends to Ingrid
PROGRESS GALLERY
February 28, 2026—Amy Smith’s completed collage has arrived at headquarters.
February 28, 2026—Jenny Kwon’s completed collage has arrived at headquarters.
February 28, 2026—Genia Gilbert’s completed collage has arrived at headquarters.
February 28, 2026—Ingrid Ekstrom’s completed collage has arrived at headquarters.
February 16, 2026—Ellen Lafferty’s completed collage has arrived at headquarters.
Ingrid Ekstrom, October 19, 2025
We had our second in-person collage party on October 10, which also included a celebration of Genia’s birthday. This time we were in Santa Cruz at Amy’s house. Here’s a photo of our busy collage table and Amy’s collage after I contributed to it and returned it to her for completion.
I’m also attaching a photo of Ellen’s collage, which I just finished working on today, and will send to Amy this week. Once Amy receives it, all of Group 13’s collages will be in Stages 5 or 6.
Our next collage party is November 1, and I’m pretty sure we’ll finish up all the collages that day. I think we may set a Postal Collage Project speed record.
Or maybe I’ll just continue to work on mine until the March 1 deadline…
Ingrid Ekstrom, October 8, 2025
Here is a photo of the collage Jenny initiated in Stage 2, when I received it from Genia. I had some fun with paint, adding some horizontal bands of color to ground the vertical elements floating up the page, and outlining some of the shapes. I’ll pass this Stage 3 version to Amy when we all get together again on Friday.
Ingrid, September 29, 2025
Our Collage Party was such a fun time! We were having so much fun that after the Stage 2 pass for each collage, we just kept going. So now all of the collages are in Stage 3 or 4, and it’s not even October yet. AND…we have a second Collage Party scheduled for October 10!
We intended to move quickly because Amy will be out of town in January and February, but this is super fast. After participating in the Collage Project for 14 years, this is a whole different kind of experience for me. It’s less contemplation, and faster decisions powered by tasty snacks and catching up with friends.
Sharing photos of my collage which is now with Jenny for Stage 4, and Genia’s collage, which I worked on in Stage 2 and is now with Amy. And a couple of photos of our fun time collaging, with our special guest May as the life of the party.
Ingrid Ekstrom, September 24, 2025
Finished my starter collage, and looking forward to the entire Group 13–and a special guest–arriving at our house on Saturday for a Collage Party. We’ll pass our starters to each of our ‘go-to’ people and work on them in person.
Ingrid Ekstrom, September 17, 2025
I’m excited the five of us are now working together on the Postal Collage Project! Over the years, we’ve come together for hikes, dinners, brunches, a baby shower (!) and a weekend away—and now, for the first time, we’re working together on the Collage Project, including in-person collaging sessions! Beyond more reasons to spend time together, the Project will uncover creativity inside each of us individually and as a group.
I’m starting to consider what I’ll do for my starter collage, in preparation for our Sept 27 get-together. If you’re feeling stumped about what you’ll do, my advice is to avoid overthinking it. The starter collage is always, for me, the simplest one to do—it’s often just a few elements attached to a piece of paper or cardboard, and it’s done!
Also, you might enjoy the September posts of other Postal Collage #15 participants, which include images they’ve posted of their starter collages and workspaces. On the Berkeley Commonplace homepage, there’s a section called Group-Gallery links—groups that have already posted images of starter collages include Groups 2, 3, 17, 31, 32, 33, 38, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 48, 49, 50, 53, 56, 62, 65, 67, 68, 69, 72, 76, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 93. Have a look around!
Finally, as we get started, I wanted to share with you my experience on last year’s Postal Collage Project. I wrote about it in the essay below, which was published in a May 2025 issue of the Berkeley Times. I’m encouraging myself to feel curious and free again this year—it’s an ongoing process for me—and hoping that you will too.
Looking forward to starting this new creative adventure with you!
I’ve lived in Berkeley for 28 years. Half of that time—the last 14 years—I’ve participated in the annual Postal Collage Project.
Every year, I look forward to visiting the Projects’ exhibit of completed collages in the Spring, with its 200-300 collaborative collages displayed side-by-side on the Berkeley Art Center’s gallery walls. So many different approaches, sizes and shapes, levels of cohesion and chaos, and curious details. And, also, remarkable similarities. In one year, there was a curious predominance of shades of pink across several collages. In another, images of birds were unusually common.
I believe the energy and diversity of each year’s collection results from the Project’s unusual collaborative process, which gives every project participant complete freedom in how they contribute to the collages they exchange within their 5-person group. That autonomy produces a range of responses, from careful alignment with others’ contributions to no-holds-barred self-expression.
For the first 13 years I participated in the Project, I exercised my autonomy cautiously. I was conflicted by interior thoughts telling me 1) I should make collage contributions that will please other people, and 2) I should take the opportunity on each collage to creatively express myself. My contributions generally fell somewhere in between those two goals, leaving me feeling ambivalent about most of them.
This last year has been transformational for me as I’ve navigated some personal challenges. These challenges compelled me to confront and accept truths about myself that are both difficult and freeing. I’m learning how to express myself honestly, with vulnerability and courage. And I’m learning how to be okay with imperfection and disappointing people.
This personal work showed up in my contributions to this year’s Project collages. For the first time, I allowed myself to focus primarily on curiosity, experimentation and self-expression over creating work to please. It was challenging, fun and satisfying to prioritize that process, and listen to my creative voice—rather than my inner critic—as I removed, added, changed, and rearranged collage elements.
I’m looking forward to visiting this year’s Postal Collage Project exhibit, viewing the artworks representing the many voices and diverse creativity of the participants, including my own. I’m also anticipating the start of the next Postal Collage Project in September, when I will again courageously tap into my autonomy, listen to my creative voice, and explore.