Now, after that heart-warming moment, my final blog. And amazingly enough, its NOT about healthcare!
My website that I've chosen, doesn't typify America, not in a conventional way anyway, I think it shows a different side to America, one that isn't always visible and is considered slightly tabboo to talk about. I will try and explain as best I can...
Frank Warren set up Post Secret, a mail art project. Initially he placed blank postcards in libraries, banks and shops with written instructions and addressed to himself. The intructions said to remain anonymous. They also said to write a secret down that you had never told anyone and try to make it as creative as possible. Immediatley Frank began to recieve secrets, and he recieved more than the amount of postcards he had given out. He then began to exhibit the postcards in art galleries, on a small scale. The idea behind post secret then became extremely well known through a music video, by All American Rejects- Dirty Little Secret, which showed postcards from Frank's first book PostSecret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives.
After this, Frank set up a blog spot, where every Sunday he posts 20 new secrets. To date he has exhibited over 2,500 postcards, and recieved hundreds of thousands.
According to Youth Trends' February 2008 "Top Ten List Report" PostSecret was the 10th most popular site amongst female students in the USA, with 7% of those polled naming the site as their favorite. Frank Warren is currently hosting events at numerous colleges to speak about the many different secrets of today's society. An art exhibition, also currently traveling the country, showcases many of the hundreds of thousands of secrets Warren has received.
Frank has released 4 books, and is currently compiling the 5th book. However the publishing of the books lead to people placing their own postcards with their secrets on in the actual books, allowing the person who buys it to keep their own anonymous secret.
The subjects of the secret could be anything, ranging from hopes and regrets, embarrassing habbits and criminal activity, memories from childhood and sexual misconduct. The only rule is they must be true and they must never have been told to anyone.
Ive been following Post secret for around 3 years now. I have the books and regularly read the blog spot. Some of the secrets are funny.
Some are shocking.
When Ive read some of the secrets, I can imagine them to be cathartic for people. Its not just Americans, everyone has secrets, but Postsecret has allowed for confrontation of the self, it has allowed people to take a look at themselves and not be so worried. Its a typical situation of 'I'm the only one'. Post secret enables people to band together and realise that our secrets arent really secrets atall. They are unifying qualities amongst people.
I think it does typify America in a way. Its the unseen America, the things that people dont want to talk about, but know is there and wont go away.
Post secret has made me laugh, it has made me cry but most of all has shown me that people dont have to unite over social groupings, religious views or have to be a slave to the media, but can find a common ground in their secrets. Shameful, embarrassing, shocking, funny and cringeworthy. :)
http://postsecret.blogspot.com/
Have a look, maybe see if the library has any of Frank's books, you should definitley have a look at them.
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