Scott Antarctic Expedition Auction

Robert Scott led a British expedition to the South Pole in 1910. Charles Seymour [Silas] Wright went along as a physicist/geologist/whatever, and was turned back when Scott and a couple of others decided to make the last leg of the trip alone. Scott, of course, reached the Pole, only to find out Roald Amundsen had gotten there a few weeks ahead of him. The British crew died on the way back. Silas Wright led the search expedition in 1912 and found his friends' bodies frozen in their tent.

Wright's family has now put his incredible trove of artifacts from the trip up at auction at Christie's London, Sept. 22. For some reason, the photographs blow my mind. There are hundreds of them, vintage prints, contact prints, lantern slides. But just the idea that these guys were hauling glass plate negatives across glaciers and developing them in darktents.



Wright wasn't the official photographer on what was called the Terra Nova Expedition; that'd be Herbert George Ponting, who taught Wright the ropes. There are a bunch of Ponting artifacts and photos in the sale, too, including his own 3-volume set of 800+ prints, which he used for documentation, quality checking, and ordering throughout his life.



Then, wow, there's Lawrence Oates' sleeping bag cover. Oates was one of the four men who went on with Scott to the Pole:

With 400 miles (670 km) still to travel across the Ross Ice Shelf, the party's prospects steadily worsened as, with deteriorating weather, frostbite, snow blindness, hunger and exhaustion, they struggled northward. On 16 March, Oates, whose condition was aggravated by an old war-wound to the extent that he was barely able to walk, voluntarily left the tent and walked to his death. Scott wrote that Oates' last words were, "I am just going outside and may be some time."

Wright and his later expedition returned Oates' things to his mother. It was originally sold at Christie's with other of Oates' effects in 1991. It is expected to bring 25,000-35,000 pounds.

I was planning to point out how awful and hard-to-use Christie's new ecatalogue system is, but at this juncture in the blogging process, my complaints seem a bit petty.

Exploration and Travel with the Polar Sale [christies.com]

Single Egg Incubator, by Andrea Zittel

Very little of Andrea Zittel's artwork ever comes up at auction. This Single Egg Incubator is one of an edition of two from 1991, very early in her career. Frankly, I'm posting now as a way to psych myself out of bidding for it, it's just that awesome.

Oh no, I feel it's not going to work, and I'm just going to end up paying even more, and then I'll have to explain an toaster-sized egg crib and the price to the Mrs.; this is not going to end well...

Sept. 14, Lot 304: Single Egg Incubator, 1991, est. $4,000-6,000 [wright20.com]

Garage Sale Report - August 28, 2010

Pasadena, California - Spied but not acquired.

Clever Washboard Reuse

Washboard converted into a shaving mirror.

Spied in the window of Thrifty Appliance, Burbank, California

More from Speedweek

Bonneville Speedweek Photo Sets

Roseville 'Tourist' Pattern

All this pottery and ceramic talk prompted me to Google my favorite Roseville pattern. In fact, 'Tourist' is just plain and simple my favorite pattern for the whole bing-bong world of pottery. Except for the hippo plates, of course.

Roseville 'Tourist' Wall Pocket

Clarice Cliff 'Summerhouse'

Circa 1932

Clarice Cliff vase at Auction

John Wadsworth x Minton Tile

Circa 1910

5 Tile Set at Bonhams Ceramics Auction

Garage Sale Report - August 24th, 2010

It is infrequent that I buy something that is un-Google-able. Of course, this is my own lack of knowledge as I don't know where to even start looking.

I love it. There is a grotesque quality that I find delightful.

The glaze is so thick I can't make out a single letter on the maker's mark.

Any ideas?

The Grid And The Wave

I've had a few art works picked up for museum exhibitions and stuff, and the beautiful dance of watching professional art handlers work never gets old for me. So I shouldn't be surprised at how geeked out I get over PACIN, the Packing, Art handling & Crating Information Network, a Professional Interest Committee of AAM - the American Association of Museums created by and for Hands-On Collections Care Professionals?

Did you know the Mercedes/Dodge Sprinter is becoming the high-performance, cost-effective art moving vehicle of choice among museums?

Or that The Grid is an excellent way for rapidly track&packing large numbers of small items? Or that The Wave, developed during the 2000-2004 move of 800,000 artifacts into the Smithsonian's Museum of the American Indian, provides as much protection as mummy-wrapping, but with far less material waste or individual item handling?

PACIN [pacin.org]

Mary Blair in Vacu-Form

Artist Mary Blair's work continues to make us say "Aaahhhh!"  Whether it be her illustrations for Little Golden Books, designs for film animation and Disneyland rides ...or these charming plastic wall hangings from the 1950s.   I want them all.

Some on eBay now...

Pointing Hand Directory - Hammer Museum x Machine Project

Commissioned by Machine Project for the Hammer Museum residency in Los Angeles, CA. 

Sign points viewers to stairways, elevator, theater, cafe, and self. 

Built by Matt Jones. Programming by Pylon Technical.

Concept design by Maria Mortati.

Machine Project Hammer Residency

Previously, Maria Mortati on D+R

Do You Have George Washington In A Glass?

Did not know that in 1800, folks were taking their brand new, original Gilbert Stuart paintings of George Washington to Canton and having them knocked off in editions of 100. OG Chinese paintings on glass of Washington are in the collections of various historical societies museums, like the one above, which was donated to the New Britain Museum of American Art.

Artnews looked at the OG Gilbert Stuart knockoff market [artnews]
via Inside a Chinese Tennis Shoe Factory [nyt]

Picasso Olé!

This is an ad I stumbled across in the New Yorker magazine archive, probably around 1959 or '60, for Picasso fabric by Bloomcraft. "If the ordinary bores you and the imaginative stirs your soul, this decorative fabric collection was designed for you... as vital, daring and provocative as the Master himself. And the cloth is protected by Du Pont's Ze pel® fluoridizer that makes it stain resistant and water repellent."

Apparently, the silkscreened designs were taken from Picasso's sketchbooks--or that's the conceit, anyway--because they're called Carnet, Carnet II, etc. Here's a much more elaborate design on a single selvedge sample. You'd have to be pretty daring to cover your lawn furniture with that, let me tell you.

But what if the secret to a daring, provocative, out-of-the-ordinary life isn't Picasso, but Ze pel®? I mean, just check out this Bruce Wayne/Dick Grayson-lookin' couple here in a 1965 Life Magazine ad from Du Pont:



Slosh that chili sauce! Let it sit for half an hour! Why not live in Stainless Style indeed! Ze pel® can protect you from every element except ♀ne: cupids arrows.

Accomplishments, William Powhida

Click for big

I am particularly interested in seeing the Dash Show biopic. Too bad poor William Powhida needs to survive two overdoses first.

Lately, I have been working on a list of self-aggrandizing disorders.

• Biennialism - upon announcement from Whitney, afflicted realizes they have two years to get their shit together.
• Obsessive MOCA Syndrome (OMS) - comparing one's height to Deitch; 'right' white for walls. Fundraising rarely considered.
• Mac500k Fever - without cause, patient mentally 'spends' genius grant. Often, subject to frequent revision.
• Rose Wardrobe Disorder (RWD) - condition in which patient considers what they would wear on Charlie Rose.
• Profillitis - a mental disorder in which an individual considers how their New Yorker profile would read.

I suffer from all the above. Mercifully, the afflictions don't last long since reality kicks in quickly.

William Powhida, via Jen Bekman, via Jukebox

Bonneville Speed Week 2010

Old Crow Racing

My pals Bobby and Lucky are at Bonneville this week so I have been watching the SCTA site for photos and records. Best of luck, fellas!

Stahl Racing

Old Crow Racing

Bobby's Blog

SCTA - Speed Week 2010

Wizzywig Comics QSL Card

Very nice. Very, very nice. 

Wizzywig Comics QSL Card for Next Hope

Labatt's Streamliner Beer Truck

From D+R reader Robert:

I ran across a picture of the LaBatt's Beer Streamliner and I instantly fell in love. I miss the idea of delivering a single product in style - a transport with a single purpose. Perhaps this is the Canadian "Budweiser Clydesdale." I just wish I could witness one in the wild.

Great B&W picture: http://i.imgur.com/B0niN.jpg

Lots more information through the usual avenues.

I agree. I am a total sucker for purpose built equipment. The teardrop driver's side window is a particularly elegant piece of work.

Labatt Streamliner Beer Truck (Thanks, Robert!)

Garage Sale Report: August 14, 2010

The Lorus Sports features an ingenuously simple web strap with a knapsack-style buckle. I think it looks very contemporary.

For a brief moment, I wore two watches today. I apologize. It won't happen again.

Blessed Tool Box

I am happy with how this turned out.

We Loan Tools on Coco's Variety

Elvis Hair In A Jar

Lot 46272: From the King's Personal Barber: A Large Quantity of the Hair That Fascinated the World for Decades....

...

"...One of his prize possessions was a bag of hair clippings that he had saved over many years while cutting and stylizing Elvis' hair. He ascertained at this time that this bag of hair clippings were personally saved by him and he verified to me with his solemn oath that this bag of hair clippings were actually Elvis' hair. Prior to Mr. Gill's death, he gave me this bag of hair clippings because of our close friendship and mutual love of Elvis. At this time, these hair clippings given to me from Mr. Gill have been in my sole possession up to this date. I swear and affirm that the above statement is true. I do solemnly swear and attest that the hair clippings are actually from Elvis Aaron Presley and were given to me by Mr. Homer Gilleland and are my sole property."

...

No relic can be owned of his that is more personal or symbolic than a sample of his hair. It's not likely that the keen collector or shrewd dealer will ever again have the opportunity to bid on and buy such a large and fully-provenanced grouping.. Estimate: $20,000 - up.

Forget the hair. The language of this auction lot is a milestone in the advancement of Western Civilization.

Lot 46272: From the King's Personal Barber: A Large Quantity of the Hair That Fascinated the World for Decades...., currently $14,430, auction ends Aug 14 [ha.com via anonymous works]

The Other Hank Ketcham

While Dennis the Menace is not a cartoon that I ever found funny, I do absolutely love Hank Ketcham's work. His loose lines and ability to render human gesture with liquidity and ease are on display in I Wanna Go Home.


(via Clockroom)

The Girls Are All Right

(Click for big) This cartoon is from one of those 50's bathroom books of "naughty" humor called "Sextra Special", published in 1953 by Scylla Inc. There are no other attributions in the book. None. Not for writers, editors or cartoonists. Certainly, this was to distance reputable folk professionally from such lurid and shocking content as "Mommy, can our maid see in the dark? She just told daddy he needs a shave." Today it all seems much more tame and endearingly corny. Cartoons take place in one of three scenarios: rich portly, mustachioed and acsotted men with spindly blondes who tend to their needs in exchange for silver fox-fur or rent, nurses with randy patients and desert islanders left to chase each other around the coconut tree. Ah, the good ol' days!

But, I think this cartoon that appears only on the inside back flap of the dusk jacket is the best thing in the whole book. After that one about the traveling salesman and the farmer's daughter, of course.

How Steel Is Made

Spotted at an architectural and deceased science teacher hall closet salvage shop in Salt Lake City:

Today, only a handful of us knows how to weld a rebar spider. A sad decline from the day when, thanks to the filmstrip and teaching aid division of United States Steel Corporation, every freedom-loving student in America knew how to make steel.

Rebar Spider

Masters of welding art may have filled America's garden centers with whimsical scrap metal birds, humans, even deer. But they save their greatest works for their own front yards.

This boulder-and-rebar spider was spotted in Diamond Valley, Utah, a scenic desert outpost for regular folks who just want a little extra space for their horses, four-wheelers, hot rods--and welding studios.

New Tool at CRASHspace

What is it? The ultimate flexible shaft Dremel for evil dentistry? It looks like the head is some sort of aspirator or mixer or something else weird...

Mystery tool at CRASHSpace

UPDATE: Anon says, "Di-Profile rotary tool!" Yep, a De-Profiler. Not cheap!

Garage Sale Report - July 31, 2010

I only had this little cutie for a day as I gave it to the Ramshackle Solid boys.



Made by the Los Angeles Tricycle Company. After I weld the crank back on, this is destined to join his sister at Coco's.

When I posted the list of objects that I am chasing, I ended with the caveat that the most exciting find was something as yet unknown. Something I didn't know I wanted because I didn't know it existed. Then, the next day, I stumbled upon this Avant Polaroid ID Camera. Of course, intellectually I knew that there were Polaroid ID cameras in the world, but I certainly didn't think I needed one.

A fascinating machine that is almost without value. There is one on eBay right now for $8.48. But I suuuure am glad I got it.

As it takes a four-way Polaroid, the four geared lenses are married together with a central gear so they move in sync.

Operation is incredibly straightforward. Click to see the instructions clearly. I know it is dirty. It has since been cleaned. Most things in the world are dirty.

Classic cameras are geeky. Polaroids are geekier. 4-way Polaroid ID cameras are even worse. And to focus on the battery box, well, what can I say? I am a goner.

If you have ever bought a Land Camera, you were probably faced with the heartbreak of the long forgotten, corroded battery but this battery box is pristine. It has never had a battery as it doesn't need one. Avant bypassed the battery and added a transformer as part of their OEM retrofit of a stock Land Camera. You could keep a box of Jujubees in there.

The above shot was my first try. A little dark and a bit busy for the format. But, amazingly, that photo was taken with film that was in the camera. I took the Avant to Coco's and took some more pics.

UPDATE: D+R reader Don points out, "Have you noticed, your cool Polaroid camera takes stereoscopic pics. Use the cross eye method to see."

Gives me an immediate headache, but it does look 3-D!

Defcon Badges

That is pretty bad ass.

Defcon Photos from our man eecue (via BB)

Q: Automating These Freakin' Heavy Garage Doors?

So we're at my in-laws' house in the desert of southern Utah, and they have these rather unwieldy steel garage doors. To open them requires moving out the anti-snake boards, pulling up the steel rod there, then folding them out one at a time as they slide along the track there.



They said an engineer told'em he'd have to sit and stare at those doors for a couple of weeks to figure out how to put an automatic garage door opener on there. There's room for an apparatus or two, but probably not arms. Maybe a chain and winch setup of some kind? If anyone has any ideas, I'd love to hear them.

Update: thanks for the suggestions and questions. A couple of folks asked what the doors look like open, or partly open, so I took another shot:



After telling my father-in-law that the Internet would solve his garage door opener challenge, he mentioned that the real trick--which I'd not noticed--is handling the final pop or lock, like a knee, when the door is shut. Mister Jalopy suggested perhaps an electromagnet, which might, I thought, be able to reverse and push the door out, too.

But his wisest comment was, "this is my favorite type of problem: not mine." And now that we're home, it's not mine, either!

Dazzlers of Needlework

I am completely agog over these embroidered felt brooches from designedbyjane. They are finely cut, conceived, color-considered and stitched fantastically well. Beauties to behold.

Behold!

Mayor Mike's Bluetooth Gun

Our man in Mt. Holly, Mayor Mike, has crafted a clever way to add a little excitement to incoming calls. I like the trigger operated switch, which appears to be heavy duty enough to outlive a stock switch 10:1.

Any of you who know me well enough know that I hate talking on the telephone. I really, really, really hate it. Inspired by the Retro Wireless Handset project from Make Vol. 20, I decided to mod a Bluetooth earpiece for my phone out of a kids plastic toy gun. Now, I look forward to receiving a call from the First Lady while I'm at work. I draw the gun out of my pocket, stick the barrel in my ear (the speaker is in the business end), and pull the trigger to answer the call.

Below is a larger photo of the guts (in charging mode with the cable attached). It still needs a bit of work to flush mount the microphone and I've been debating on painting it to look like a real gun. (I get equally giddy and frightened by the panic that this could cause should someone not notice that the gun is a fake or should I accidentally take a call while at the bank.) But you can see how perfectly the trigger and switch work together on this model of toy gun.

Keep on doing what you do, Mike! If it takes answering calls on a plastic gun to keep things interesting, so be it.

Mayor Mike's Bluetooth 'Town Constable' Gun