Chronicles in Tape
The “Paraphernalia” gallery is inspired by the gear that made my photography possible. It might someday house the largest collection of pictures. There’s so damned much stuff! And just like the film archives that have been marinating for decades, it’s all, the pretty and the not so pretty, fodder for new work.
Chronicles in Tape - evidence of countless trips to the labs in New York City’s Photo District, a.k.a. the Flatiron District, back in the ‘90s pre-digital era. 4X5 Kodak film came in 10 and 50 sheet boxes. Whatever amount of sheet film was shot, it would be packed in an empty box, labeled, then taped on all sides to keep the film safe from light leaks and curious messengers on its way to the lab. When the box came back, the film would be transferred to archival polyethylene pages and delivered to the client. I’d hold onto the empty box for the next time. Rather than remove the tape, one would slice it with a razor, leaving the old tape on the box, and new tape would be used for the return. Another job, another layer of tape, and when the box that came back wasn’t yours, there could be layers of various kinds of tape from other photographers. Eventually, a beautiful layer cake of tape in the service of photography. I sometimes wondered whose tape sealed what.
Comments left below are encouraged and appreciated. When prompted, entering first name is all you need. Just ignore adding email address or website; leave blank.
Get a notification to new stories (about one a month, if that) by adding my blog to your RSS reader.
