Afton artist puts portraits on envelopes in new exhibit
A portrait of Georgia O'Keefe painted by Afton artist John Kaul.
Courtesy image
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Are you one of the remaining few people who like to send cards or letters the old fashioned way through the mail?
The Afton-Minnesota based artist John Kaul has a long history of collecting stamps, sending stamps and painting stamps and envelopes. He has a brand new exhibit at the Groveland Gallery in Minneapolis featuring some of the hundreds of portraits he’s painted directly onto mailing envelopes.
He joins me right now to talk more about his work. Kaul joined MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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Audio transcript
CATHY WURZER: Hey, quick question here-- are you one of the remaining few people who like to send cards or letters the old fashioned way, through the mail? Using paper tucked into envelopes with a stamp? If so, this next story is for you.
The Afton, Minnesota-based artist John Kaul has a long history of collecting stamps, sending stamps, and painting stamps and envelopes. He has a brand new exhibit at the Groveland Gallery in Minneapolis featuring some of the hundreds of portraits he's painted directly onto mailing envelopes. He joins us right now to talk about the work. John, it's good to hear your voice. How are you?
JOHN KAUL: Well, it's good to hear yours. And thank you for doing this.
CATHY WURZER: Absolutely. Now, you've been a familiar face at the Capitol for years. You were a lobbyist. But you're also a heck of a photographer. You've taken some fabulous portraits of lawmakers and other notable Minnesotans.
But what I did not know about you was your ability to paint and that you're a stamp collector. So how did you first start making art with envelopes?
JOHN KAUL: Well, I would dress up my letters to people with interesting stamps. Sometimes there would be a theme. If I was sending it to an environmentalist, I might put environmental stamps on it. If I just wanted to create a color theme, I might select certain colors of stamps. Or if I wanted a political message, I'd pick certain people.
And so about two years ago, I was sending a thank you note to a couple of musicians that had helped me out with a short film I made, and I decided to up my game and I painted portraits of Gershwin, and I think it was Tchaikovsky on each of them. And they were very primitive.
But then I just kept doing it. And I'd done some oil painting 40 years earlier and had stopped. And so I was curious to know if I ever started painting again, where what would I paint? What would my style be? And there it was.
CATHY WURZER: I love this. In fact, I'm looking at the one that you've painted of Georgia O'Keeffe-- huge fan of Georgia O'Keeffe, by the way. I adore the envelope with Georgia's portrait on it. You've got the poppy stamps, and this great quote-- to create one's world in any of the arts takes courage, said Georgia O'Keeffe. All this is on this fairly small envelope?
JOHN KAUL: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, she's an inspiration. I've long loved her work. And my wife and I were just recently at the Ghost Ranch in New Mexico. So.
CATHY WURZER: Wow. And it does take courage to create art. It does. Do you find that for yourself?
JOHN KAUL: Well, a little bit. Some of my art has a political theme to it, which gets out there a little bit. When you're retired and you've got a halfway decent fixed income, it doesn't take the kind of courage it takes for so many of my artist friends who make it all the way through their life. And it's quite a struggle with a lot of ups and downs.
I didn't have that because I was at the Capitol for half a century doing various things. And so it didn't take the same-- for me, it's more of a second act. But I've always been an artist, it's just that I never tried to make a living at it. That's where the courage comes in.
CATHY WURZER: Sure. I know that you have a large collection not only of stamps, and they're beautiful. They're lovely. But you also have a collection of quotations that you've kept throughout your life?
JOHN KAUL: I remember when I was about 18 years old sitting in the backyard and reading a book. And I thought someone had said something so beautifully, and I wrote it down. And then I did that and continued to do that to this very day. And I've got 10,000 quotes in a database by subject matter. And so I can find things when I need to say something.
[CATHY LAUGHS]
CATHY WURZER: So that's part of the process, of course, is finding the right quote, the right stamp, and then painting the portrait.
JOHN KAUL: Right. It's a process. Yeah. Sometimes it's a postage stamp that will inspire me. And then sometimes it's a quote or an event that happens. You just never know.
CATHY WURZER: So you talk about your drive to create art as kind of a neural itch. Did I get that right?
JOHN KAUL: Correct.
CATHY WURZER: And what does that mean?
JOHN KAUL: Well, it's a phrase that WH Auden used. He was describing the human sex drive, but I'm talking about my creative impulses. He called it an intolerable neural itch. I just call it a neural itch where I've always had, even when I had a career, I've always had a side show, whether it was kinetic sculpture, oil painting, gardening, photography.
I always had to have something that I was doing that was for my soul. And so that's the neural itch. That's what, I think, to me, creativity is-- you get this itch to do something, and then you do it.
CATHY WURZER: Is there something that you've always wanted to try in the arts that you have not done yet?
JOHN KAUL: Well, I think I'm doing it right now. I've done filmmaking. I've had a couple of partnerships with TPT, which was extraordinarily rewarding. I've got photo exhibits. I think right now, I'm going to concentrate on photography.
I'm working on a collection of heroes in our time, which I'll be working on in the next year. I intend to continue painting envelopes because every night when my wife and I sit down together and watch some TV series, I'm painting and she's sitting on the couch. And so I'll continue to paint, and I'm going to continue to do photography.
I'm 77 years old, so I don't really want to take on too much new things. But if I can just do those two things well, I'll be happy.
CATHY WURZER: Perfect your art right now. Say, before you go, I talked about Georgia O'Keeffe and that great quote about courage. I understand you have some art that you've created to give folks courage going into the 2024 election cycle.
JOHN KAUL: Well, what I've been doing, I've got two shows at once. I want to focus on the one at Groveland, but I also have one at Westminster Presbyterian, because they had an opening. I was going to do this show later in the year. And it's Heroes in Our Time.
And I'm looking at people that have displayed either-- it's about courage, whether it be moral, physical, or political courage. So I've got Maria Yovanovitch in it. I've got Jamie Raskin. I've got Liz Cheney. I got her portrait-- Anita Hill, Jessie Diggins. It's people that have-- Will Steger, Anne Bancroft. I think it's a good idea in 2024 to focus on courage. So I'm doing that too.
CATHY WURZER: Gosh, John, you're a renaissance man. I always love talking to you. Thank you so much. And best of luck.
JOHN KAUL: Groveland Gallery.
CATHY WURZER: Curious to see-- I'm definitely going to tell people to go to Groveland Gallery, I can tell you that much. Take care of yourself, John. See ya.
JOHN KAUL: Thanks so much, Cathy.
CATHY WURZER: Likewise, thank you. Artist John Kaul has been with us. He's showing his paintings. These are these really cool envelopes now with portraits of famous people, beautiful stamps and then a quote, at the Groveland Gallery in Minneapolis January 27. It runs through March the 2nd. We're going to have to go post one of John's envelopes online at mprnews.org. Again, one of my favorites is Georgia O'Keeffe.
The Afton, Minnesota-based artist John Kaul has a long history of collecting stamps, sending stamps, and painting stamps and envelopes. He has a brand new exhibit at the Groveland Gallery in Minneapolis featuring some of the hundreds of portraits he's painted directly onto mailing envelopes. He joins us right now to talk about the work. John, it's good to hear your voice. How are you?
JOHN KAUL: Well, it's good to hear yours. And thank you for doing this.
CATHY WURZER: Absolutely. Now, you've been a familiar face at the Capitol for years. You were a lobbyist. But you're also a heck of a photographer. You've taken some fabulous portraits of lawmakers and other notable Minnesotans.
But what I did not know about you was your ability to paint and that you're a stamp collector. So how did you first start making art with envelopes?
JOHN KAUL: Well, I would dress up my letters to people with interesting stamps. Sometimes there would be a theme. If I was sending it to an environmentalist, I might put environmental stamps on it. If I just wanted to create a color theme, I might select certain colors of stamps. Or if I wanted a political message, I'd pick certain people.
And so about two years ago, I was sending a thank you note to a couple of musicians that had helped me out with a short film I made, and I decided to up my game and I painted portraits of Gershwin, and I think it was Tchaikovsky on each of them. And they were very primitive.
But then I just kept doing it. And I'd done some oil painting 40 years earlier and had stopped. And so I was curious to know if I ever started painting again, where what would I paint? What would my style be? And there it was.
CATHY WURZER: I love this. In fact, I'm looking at the one that you've painted of Georgia O'Keeffe-- huge fan of Georgia O'Keeffe, by the way. I adore the envelope with Georgia's portrait on it. You've got the poppy stamps, and this great quote-- to create one's world in any of the arts takes courage, said Georgia O'Keeffe. All this is on this fairly small envelope?
JOHN KAUL: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, she's an inspiration. I've long loved her work. And my wife and I were just recently at the Ghost Ranch in New Mexico. So.
CATHY WURZER: Wow. And it does take courage to create art. It does. Do you find that for yourself?
JOHN KAUL: Well, a little bit. Some of my art has a political theme to it, which gets out there a little bit. When you're retired and you've got a halfway decent fixed income, it doesn't take the kind of courage it takes for so many of my artist friends who make it all the way through their life. And it's quite a struggle with a lot of ups and downs.
I didn't have that because I was at the Capitol for half a century doing various things. And so it didn't take the same-- for me, it's more of a second act. But I've always been an artist, it's just that I never tried to make a living at it. That's where the courage comes in.
CATHY WURZER: Sure. I know that you have a large collection not only of stamps, and they're beautiful. They're lovely. But you also have a collection of quotations that you've kept throughout your life?
JOHN KAUL: I remember when I was about 18 years old sitting in the backyard and reading a book. And I thought someone had said something so beautifully, and I wrote it down. And then I did that and continued to do that to this very day. And I've got 10,000 quotes in a database by subject matter. And so I can find things when I need to say something.
[CATHY LAUGHS]
CATHY WURZER: So that's part of the process, of course, is finding the right quote, the right stamp, and then painting the portrait.
JOHN KAUL: Right. It's a process. Yeah. Sometimes it's a postage stamp that will inspire me. And then sometimes it's a quote or an event that happens. You just never know.
CATHY WURZER: So you talk about your drive to create art as kind of a neural itch. Did I get that right?
JOHN KAUL: Correct.
CATHY WURZER: And what does that mean?
JOHN KAUL: Well, it's a phrase that WH Auden used. He was describing the human sex drive, but I'm talking about my creative impulses. He called it an intolerable neural itch. I just call it a neural itch where I've always had, even when I had a career, I've always had a side show, whether it was kinetic sculpture, oil painting, gardening, photography.
I always had to have something that I was doing that was for my soul. And so that's the neural itch. That's what, I think, to me, creativity is-- you get this itch to do something, and then you do it.
CATHY WURZER: Is there something that you've always wanted to try in the arts that you have not done yet?
JOHN KAUL: Well, I think I'm doing it right now. I've done filmmaking. I've had a couple of partnerships with TPT, which was extraordinarily rewarding. I've got photo exhibits. I think right now, I'm going to concentrate on photography.
I'm working on a collection of heroes in our time, which I'll be working on in the next year. I intend to continue painting envelopes because every night when my wife and I sit down together and watch some TV series, I'm painting and she's sitting on the couch. And so I'll continue to paint, and I'm going to continue to do photography.
I'm 77 years old, so I don't really want to take on too much new things. But if I can just do those two things well, I'll be happy.
CATHY WURZER: Perfect your art right now. Say, before you go, I talked about Georgia O'Keeffe and that great quote about courage. I understand you have some art that you've created to give folks courage going into the 2024 election cycle.
JOHN KAUL: Well, what I've been doing, I've got two shows at once. I want to focus on the one at Groveland, but I also have one at Westminster Presbyterian, because they had an opening. I was going to do this show later in the year. And it's Heroes in Our Time.
And I'm looking at people that have displayed either-- it's about courage, whether it be moral, physical, or political courage. So I've got Maria Yovanovitch in it. I've got Jamie Raskin. I've got Liz Cheney. I got her portrait-- Anita Hill, Jessie Diggins. It's people that have-- Will Steger, Anne Bancroft. I think it's a good idea in 2024 to focus on courage. So I'm doing that too.
CATHY WURZER: Gosh, John, you're a renaissance man. I always love talking to you. Thank you so much. And best of luck.
JOHN KAUL: Groveland Gallery.
CATHY WURZER: Curious to see-- I'm definitely going to tell people to go to Groveland Gallery, I can tell you that much. Take care of yourself, John. See ya.
JOHN KAUL: Thanks so much, Cathy.
CATHY WURZER: Likewise, thank you. Artist John Kaul has been with us. He's showing his paintings. These are these really cool envelopes now with portraits of famous people, beautiful stamps and then a quote, at the Groveland Gallery in Minneapolis January 27. It runs through March the 2nd. We're going to have to go post one of John's envelopes online at mprnews.org. Again, one of my favorites is Georgia O'Keeffe.
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