Why young people choose analogue (and what that says about art on the wall)

⏱️ 9 minute read

Something remarkable is happening. While we live deeper than ever in a digital world, more and more young people are consciously seeking their way back to the tangible. Handwritten letters. Polaroid photos. Vinyl records. And yes, also art on the wall that you can actually touch. The snail mail trend is not a nostalgic whim; it's a signal. In this article, I delve into what's behind this movement and why I believe it also says something about how we view art.

Snail mail is not alone

Snail mail is the most visible example, but it doesn't stand alone. Across the board, we see young people reverting to analog experiences. Not out of nostalgia for a time they never experienced themselves, but because it offers something digital cannot: presence.

🎵 Vinyl

Vinyl sales have surpassed CDs for the first time since 1987, and it's not just fifty-somethings buying records. Gen Z is the fastest-growing group of buyers. What attracts them? The ritual. Putting on a record demands attention: you take it out of its sleeve, place it on the turntable, lower the needle. You can't just fast-forward. You listen to an album as it was intended, from front to back, with the cover in your hands. That's a fundamentally different relationship with music than a playlist on shuffle.

📷 Analog photography

Disposable cameras and film rolls are making a massive comeback. Kodak is working overtime. Fujifilm can barely keep up with the demand for Instax film. But why would you take photos that you won't see for a week when your phone instantly delivers a perfectly exposed shot? Precisely for that reason. The uncertainty is the appeal. You don't know what you'll get. You make more conscious choices about what you photograph. And when the photos finally appear, you truly look at them, instead of swiping them away.

📚 Physical books

Print book sales are rising, while e-readers are stagnating. Bookstores are opening new branches in cities where they disappeared ten years ago. On TikTok, #BookTok has hundreds of millions of views, but the recommendations almost always lead to physical copies. A book has a smell, a weight, a cover you choose. You can write in it, keep a card inside, pass it on to someone else. You can't do that with an e-book.

📓 Journaling

Notebooks, bullet journals, and diaries have become a TikTok phenomenon. Moleskine and Leuchtturm1917 report record sales among Gen Z. Journaling is more than just writing down what you've done. It's a way to organize thoughts without an algorithm watching. You write for yourself, not for an audience. There's no like button, no notification when someone comments. It's one of the few places where young people are completely offline with themselves.

✉️ Snail mail

The reason for this article. Handwritten letters, pen pals, washi tape, beautiful envelopes, and wax seals. Mail as a ritual. Writing a letter takes time, and that's precisely the message to the recipient: you are worth that time. You can keep a letter, reread it, find it years later. No WhatsApp message can do that.

🖼️ Art on the wall

And this is where I come in. A print or painting is the most permanent analog object you can have in your home. It doesn't disappear when you close the app. It doesn't scroll away. It's there every morning when you walk into the room, and it asks nothing back from you. No attention, no reaction, no engagement. It's just there. And that's exactly enough.

All these trends have one thing in common: they demand attention. You can't listen to a record, write a letter, or choose a painting casually. That's precisely the point.

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The snail mail trend: what's going on?

Snail mail refers to regular mail, letters and cards that you write by hand and send by post. Something that was completely normal a generation ago, but seemed to have almost disappeared in the age of WhatsApp and Instagram. Yet, on platforms like TikTok and Pinterest, we see a clear resurgence. Young people between 18 and 30 are sending each other letters again. They buy washi tape, stamps, and beautiful envelopes. They make a ritual out of it.

But why? What drives someone who grew up with smartphones to write a letter that takes three days to arrive, while a message arrives in a second?

The psychology of the tangible

The answer lies, I think, in overstimulation. We receive hundreds of notifications, messages, emails, and updates daily. Everything is fast, everything is fleeting. You read a message and it disappears into the stream. But a handwritten letter? You put it down. You save it. It has weight, literally and figuratively.

Researchers call this the endowment effect: we value things we can physically hold more highly. A letter feels more personal than a message because someone has put time and effort into it. You see the handwriting, the choice of paper, maybe a small drawing in the margin. It's proof of attention.

Analog as an act of resistance

There's also a political layer to the snail mail trend, though that might sound grand. Young people who consciously choose analog also choose something that falls outside the algorithm. A letter isn't liked, isn't shared, isn't optimized for reach. It exists only for the recipient.

I recognize that feeling in my own work. When I paint, I am completely offline for a while. No metrics, no engagement, no analytics. Just paint, canvas, and the choices I make. And when someone buys a painting or print from me, that's also a choice that falls outside the algorithm. You buy something that doesn't disappear when you close the app.

The return of the curative

Another aspect of the analog trend is curation. Young people sending snail mail consciously choose which paper, which pen, which words. They make a selection. That is the opposite of the endless stream of content we consume daily.

I see the same thing with people who buy art. They take their time. They look for a long time. They wonder if this work suits who they are, how they want to live. Buying art is a curative act. You say: I want this in my life. This deserves a place on my wall.

That's also the idea behind the Print Club. Every month you receive a carefully chosen print, packaged and shipped. Something tangible in the mailbox. Not a digital download, but a real print you can hang up. In a sense, it's the art version of snail mail.

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What this means for how you furnish your home

If the snail mail trend teaches us anything, it's that people crave meaning in the everyday. A letter is meaningful because someone put time into it. A work of art is meaningful because you chose it, and because it is present in your life every day.

I notice that people who consciously choose analog also think more consciously about their interior design. They don't want generic prints from large chains. They want something that has a story. Something made by a human, not generated by an algorithm.

My prints are that. Each work starts as an original painting, made in my studio in Tilburg. The prints are reproductions of those originals, but they carry the same intention. The same choices in color, composition, and feeling.

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FAQ

Is the snail mail trend really that big among young people?

Yes, the data indicates so. Searches for snail mail, handwritten letter, and related terms have significantly increased in recent years, particularly among 18-30 year olds. On TikTok, there are millions of views on content surrounding letter writing, finding pen pals, and collecting stationery.

What is the connection between snail mail and buying art?

Both are expressions of the same need: something tangible, something personal, something that falls outside the digital stream. People who consciously choose handwritten letters are often also people who consciously think about what they want in their physical environment.

What is KOJO Art's Print Club?

The Print Club. is a monthly subscription where you receive a selected print from KOJO Art. Something new in your mailbox every month, carefully packaged and shipped from Tilburg. Available worldwide.

Are KOJO Art's prints original works?

The prints are reproductions of original paintings that I myself created in acrylic or oil paint. Each original exists only once. The prints make the work accessible to a wider audience, without compromising the intention behind the work.

Does KOJO Art ship outside the Netherlands?

Yes, I ship worldwide. Whether you live in Amsterdam, Berlin, or New York, you can order a print or original through the webshop.

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