What Remains
Laurie Rubin | P H O T O G RA P H Y + F I L M
About Artifacts O
ne of my passions when I travel is to seek out small house museums and personal collections. The examination of someone’s personal ephemera can provide a glimpse into their passions and fascinations, or intimate their most cherished memories. Orhan Pamuk wrote in his “Modest Manifesto for Museums” in which he contends that museums, instead of advancing narratives of nations, should move to reconstruct the world of individual human beings: “Large national museums present the history of the nation — history, in a word — as being far more important than the histories of individuals. This is unfortunate because everyday stories of individuals are richer, more humane, and much more joyful. The stories of individuals are much better suited to displaying the depths of our humanity.”
Through the act of collecting and photographing the items in this series, the objects have been elevated to the status of an artifact that has transcended its original purpose for the owner. The object becomes more than a personal touchstone, it acts as a visual symbol, a synthesis, of a particular person or an event. My criteria in choosing the artifacts are largely subjective, based on whether the item appealed to me either viscerally or intellectually, or it sometimes invoked a vivid memory. They are tracked down, collected and organized according to my interests, resulting in a personal cultural history. Pamuk quotes the 16th century Istanbul painter, Veli Can, to suggest a link between beauty and memory: “ We often find objects beautiful because of a kind of resemblance to something we are already familiar with.”
I find the objects beautiful in their own right as sculptural objects. They additionally take on symbolic resonance with the revelation of their owner, maker or backstory. Some become items of inspiration when viewed within the context of the owner’s life. For example, Shimmy Baum’s hand-rigged eyeglasses, which he invented in order to continue his Talmudic studies as he began to lose his sight to macular degeneration, or the ephemera carefully collected and cataloged by Henry Darger that was later incorporated into his artworks Other artifacts are visible fallout from periods of emotional strife, again personal and collective. For example, the pocket knife, mace and Molotov cocktail that were used as evidence in the Chicago Seven trial, whose provenance was hotly disputed at the trial; and the bullet casing that belonged to Hunter Thompson, a known gun-fetishist who died from a selfinflicted gunshot. Lastly from Pamuk, “The measure of a museum’s success should not be its ability to represent a state, nation or company, or a particular history. It should be its capacity to reveal the humanity of individuals” In making images of these artifacts, I hoped to conjure an impression of a person or an event of cultural interest from the evidence that has been left behind.
Laurie Rubin
H e nry Darger’s Pai nts
Henry Darger, Jr. April 12, 1892 – April 13, 1973. He was a reclusive American writer and artist who worked as a custodian in Chicago, Illinois.
Re paired Rubber Bands
Penci ls
The Fi rst Bundle
Darger’s Dust
Sunday Comi cs
Telephone Book
Sy dney Baum’s Glasses
H u nt e r Th ompson’s Casi ng
The B a r is ta’s H a ir c ut
D e l Clos e
Before he died, Close requested that his skull be given to the Goodman Theatre fo
or use in Hamlet productions, with him being duly credited in the program as portraying Yorick.
P oc ke t Knife Ch i ca g o S e v e n Tr ia l Evide nce
The Chicago Seven were seven defendants—Abbie Hoffman conspiracy, inciting to riot and other charges related to prote Bobby Seale, the eighth man charged, had his trial severed d
n, Jerry Rubin, David Dellinger, Tom Hayden, Rennie Davis, John Froines, and Lee Weiner — charged with ests that took place in Chicago, Illinois on the occasion of the 1968 Democratic National Convention. during the proceedings, lowering the number from eight to seven.
Ma c e
Chicago Seven Trial Evidence
Molot ov Coc k tai l
Chicago Seven Trial Evidence
Chicago Seven Trial Evidence
Vi vi an Mai er
Working as a nanny into the late 1990′s, Maier would leave behind a body of work comprising over 100,000 negatives.
VIVAN MAIER’S TRUNK
a pai r of handcuff s owned by ELLIOT NESS
Marvi n Nelson ’s Pip es
AMELIA EARHART’S wreckage
“We must be on you, but we cannot see you. Fuel is running low. Been unable to reach you by radio. We are flying at 1,000 feet.” We are running north and south.” Nothing further was heard from Earhart.
A i r c r aft a lu m inum
Recover ed in 1991 on Nikuma r or o
R ic Gille s pie ’s H at
Wor n on ev er y exp ed ition to Nikuma r or o
The f r e c kl e c re am j a r
F ound a t the ca sta wa y ca mp site on Nikuma r or o i n 2010
Aviat i on P le x ig la s
Used for the ca b in wind ows of the Mod el 10 E le c t r a
Th e G r e e n B ot t le Reco v e r e d a t t h e c ast away c ampsit e i n 2 0 1 0 f r o m N ikumaroro
My c olle a gue ’s LIPSTICKS
Aunt Polly’s needlepoi nt
T H E D ANCE CAR D
Sarah was a redhead , she smoked Longfellow cigarettes.
Eli z abeth Atwater D ia ry
She Lived. She Loved. She Served. She Suffered. She Died
Laurie Rubin | P H O T O G RA P H Y + F I L M 1113 West Armitage • Chicago, IL 60614 • laurie@laurierubin.com • 773.348.2224
What Remains
Laurie Rubin | P H O T O G RA P H Y + F I L M
Laurie Rubin | P H O T O G RA P H Y + F I L M 1113 West Armitage • Chicago, IL 60614 • laurie@laurierubin.com • 773.348.2224