PostSecret

Have you ever had a secret that you wanted to scream from the rooftops, but you just didn’t want anyone to know it was your secret? I bet. I know I have. Especially when it’s a deep-seeded secret – something that’s been fermenting all your life. It’s something you’ve felt (or hadn’t felt), something you experienced (or hadn’t experienced).

Well, art can be that escape for some people.

And maybe this post is loose interpretation of what art is. But for me, I always describe my artwork as my escape. It’s the moment I disconnect from the world. And it’s weird to say that technology – something that keeps us so interconnected at every second of the day – can still help us escape from everything.

PostSecret is a blog on Blogger (that’s this site!), which allows people to send in anonymous postcards announcing their secrets. It was created by Frank Warren, and based in Germantown, MD. This explanation of the secrets, though from Wikipedia, is extremely accurate: “Entries range from admissions of sexual misconduct and criminal activity to confessions of secret desires, embarrassing habits, hopes and dreams.” The blog is updated every Sunday (with no archives, mind you), and posts about twenty postcards each week.

Some post cards are handwritten, some are collaged, some are typed. Each one is as unique as the person who created it – and yet, it remains anonymous. There is something about the freedom of this site that encourages acceptance. I love the message this site sends, even though some people have some very shameful secrets. I love that so many people become interested and vested in someone’s life that they have never met – and will never know if they meet them.

PostSecret was even the inspiration behind the All-American Rejects music video “Dirty Little Secret” in which it features people holding their secrets on written cards.

So though these are “amateur” artists – and mostly done by hand (not through graphics or that sort), it’s important to note that technology is what brings this community together and what allows an idea like this to flourish. It’s an anonymous community. And even though I’ve never sent in a secret myself, I find it so intriguing to learn about these people who I may never know. This, to me, is such an interesting combination of the ideals of art (as an escape) and of technology (as a way to connect people). Who would have thought that these two ideas could even be brought together?

You can follow PostSecret on Blogger, Twitter, and Facebook! Do check it out every Sunday – I promise you’ll be intrigued.