..
> I opted for the second approach in order to maintain more
> control and accountability in the portfolio. Alas, the
> control was only an illusion. It got lost in the mail
> somewhere, and has never turned up.
That is the problem indeed with travelling portfolios. Control is not the
only thing that can get lost. Some people lost prints and others lost their
patience...
And some people lost more than control. They lost prints and they lost
their patience...
Still, the concept is a good idea to make prints available to those who
don't have access to decent print collections. This is probably 90% of the
people on this list. In fact, when I lecture in major universities, even in
cities of 4 million+, most *graduate* students say they never saw anything
like the prints I bring along. I usually have a few carbons and Fressons
that I made myself, and the rest is from my collection. Some are from
people on this list. Not necessarily the very best as I only carry small
prints and I have to assume that they may get lost somewhere in transit.
Next year, *if* all goes well, I'll have my own (summer?) school, where a
substantial part of my collection, and my library, will be available to all
students. From fine examples of typography made over five hundred years
ago, to the most recent and most beautiful polymergravures. It may even be
possible to make my finding aids available on the net. I'll check with the
fellows hosting my web sites.
Anyone else out there with important alt-photo collections? Just
contemporary stuff made by your own students or real McCoys made one
hundred years ago? Got anything (directories or images) available on the
Net? Go ahead and blow your horn! The collections don't have to be big and
you don't have to be in a large center either. This past fall I visited
list member Rod Hook, in Rockport, Maine. A tiny town, although quite large
in the photography world. He has some historical stuff I wish I had here.
It may be worthwhile to compile a list of substantial collections that are
available out there, and put the results in our FAQ. This could be done by
geographical areas. The degree of accessibility should be indicated as
well. The Biblioth=E8que Nationale in Paris has fine specimens of just about
anything ever made but it is hardly what you would call easily accessible.
The interview process, just to see if you can get in, might take you all
day, usually to be told that the area of the library where you need to do
your work if booked up for the next 18 months... Once in, you can't ask to
see say, fine prints made by this or that as they don't classify anything
by processes. This is a common problem with the majority of public
collections out there.
Luis Nadeau
awef6t@mi.net
nadeaul@nbnet.nb.ca
=46redericton, New Brunswick, Canada
http://www.micronet.fr/~deriencg/nadeau.html
http://www.primenet.com/~dbarto/lnadeau.html