Sunday, April 27, 2008


I found this photo about a year after the matching bird photo posted earlier! It could well have been in the same dealer's unorganized collection but the reunion was still wondrous. 
Above: courtesy of Louise Despont.

Sylvia's Drawing


Courtesy of Stacy Renee Morrison; drawing by Sylvia DeWolf Ostrander.

Swapatorium



Angelica of Swapatorium has introduced me to her world, and what a world it is! She's an accomplished hunter and quite generously shares her trophies. Take a look!
She has contributed the handsome snapshot of Clyde and friend above. Reminds me of Alex.

Apologies for my inattention, dear friends!

The flu & laryngitis, apartment hunting, and a chaotic few weeks at my shop have all taken me away from uploading, downloading and hosting. An end-of-May excursion and a June move to a gorgeous apartment (any collector will no doubt sympathize with the impending task of packing and moving of a near Collyer-size mountain of curiousities and books) will make my blogging a bit spotty for the next couple of months - my sincere apologies in advance. But please do keep it coming! Each and every contribution means a lot to me.



Saturday, April 5, 2008

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Sticks & Stones

Courtesy of Ken Brown Collection

This is the newest entry, from Ken Brown. He can be seen in Other People's Pictures, which not only documents several collectors of found/vernacular photography, but also the beloved Chelsea Flea Market (which has suffered at the hands of tasteless and overzealous NYC developers, as has the entire city). Remarkably, I haven't yet seen the film but it's on my To Do List. Ken draws upon his collection of vintage photos and cards for his line of stationery and wrap, which I have been giving and receiving for at least two decades. See these links for his stationery & wrap design and to see what else is up Ken's sleeve.

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Courtesy of Saniam

Show & Tell Night

This was the seed idea, which begot something much larger. I had a few friends in my shop, all of whom collect, and it occurred to me that each would likely enjoy the others' collections as well as each others' acquaintances. The logical picture that developed was a social evening of sharing all the odd, obscure, and singular collections that likely are the single common denominator shared by the people with whom I identify.
The charm of collecting is that it very much comes from the heart, which as we know can be quite quirky. The beginnings of a collection are often spontaneous and involuntary, which can make for some fascinating collections. We want to give those with odd and singular collections the opportunity to share them with birds of a feather. The objective is manifold: to share lesser-known interests, history and insight; to make new acquaintances; and to foster the growth of personally significant collections. It is not limited to photography; it can be two-dimensional or three-dimensional.

The first one will be the evening of Friday, April 11th. The time and place will be announced at a later date, once I have a good idea of how large the crowd will be. To this end, please RSVP to socus.locus@gmail.com so I can see how many will be coming.

Via Louise... thank you.

"It is rare for collectors to present themselves to the public. They hope to be regarded as scholars, connoisseurs, if needs be as owners too, but very rarely as that what they above all are: lovers. Discretion appears to be their strongest side, frankness their weakest ... It would be better to characterize the community of genuine collectors as those who believe in chance, are worshipers of chance."
-Walter Benjamin

Saturday, March 22, 2008

A New Topic: Snowball Fights


This one inaugurates a new category: Snowball Fights. It was submitted as a mock fight photo by Stacy, but I had a pang of conscience since no one was actually "fighting" (although we can't be sure of the intentions of the boy behind her). It's nice that it happened this way, as maybe the new categories will be suggested by the photos that fall short of the target. Come to think of it, some photos may straddle more than one category, too.
Thanks to Stacy for this photo!

Note that photos can be contributed to any subject at any time. A new topic does not indicate that the old one is closed.

A Few More


Below: courtesy of Ookpik


Thanks for all the nice comments, everyone! I have been reaching out to some kindred spirits in Bloggerland and beyond. Please see the list to the right for further stimuli.
Special thanks (and hoots) to Ookpik, who has a great collection of found photographs which can be perused at ookpiksnegz.blogspot.com.
Note: please send all correspondence and submissions to socus.locus@gmail.com! I will try to post the email address in some more conspicuous manner so there's less confusion about this.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

The Fight Continues

Below: Vernon Viig, courtesy of KV



Some people just love conflict!
A little reminder to some of those who are in the first of the six degrees: I know you have something to share. If it's not a photo, then how about a suggestion? Email photos to socus.locus@gmail.com; post a comment.
Those of you who are interested in A Show & Tell Night, please make yourself known. I need a head count.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Mock Fighting Snapshots


This is the first of a few images in this category which I'll post.
You have to wonder if these snapshots occasionally indicate some latent aggression. They are likely good, clean fun.
One of the amusing aspects of these photos is that, despite the dramatization for the benefit of the photographer, at least one of the parties involved is often smiling (usually the aggressor).

Okay, now: dig through the stacks and boxes at home and in the studio, and see if you find others to add to this.

Welcome!

As a collector of many curiosities and items of limited appeal and availability, with limited means and space, and having many friends who have similar passions and limitations, it occurred to me that there are many of us and that we could easily band together and share our interests, knowledge and collections to create a trove of inspiration for and with each other.
My intent is to post an obscure topic and request submissions via email, which will then be curated and posted for everyone's benefit, effectively forming a collective collection where ownership is not the objective. In this way, a substantial collection could theoretically be pieced together from many small collections, or from the odd, companionless pieces of note that I presume are scattered over the world. My hope is that this will lead to the publication of books of these obscure collections for all of us to consult for our various projects.
My project will include Show & Tell evenings in the NYC area in which those of a similar mind can assemble and share their collections and the anecdotes, history and background that accompanies them, while meeting others who are cut from a similar cloth and opening up the possibility for forging new interests and friendships.
The stated emphasis here is a very broad idea that incorporates that which is suggested by the following words: antiques, antiquity, the various branches of history, scarcity, curiosities, obscurity. I am going to focus predominantly on topics that bring up little or no information when online searches are performed.
To get this started, I'll be posting some lonely images which are seeking kindred souls.