How does one become a collector? Though
there are many ways to rationalize collecting (preserving, sharing,
specializing in, investing in, etc.) I chose the low road- denial.
My father has always been a collector,
collecting stamps, postcards, military patches, and license plates.
He knows just about everything there is to know about his license
plate collection. His last apartment was basically papered in license
plates, and he has a story or connection to each one. To the
outsider, this collection bordered on obsession.
So when my wife pointed out that I was
a collector of musical instruments, full blown denial kicked in.
Though I have always heard that the apple doesn't fall far from the
tree, I didn't want to be so easily labeled. What collection? All of
my musical instruments are fully functional, and all are occasionally
played. I don't own a single wall- hanger(useful only for aesthetic
purposes)! Surely if they are all functional, then it is not a
collection as much as a group of tools.
When I started collecting Polaroid
cameras, I continued to employ this skewed logic. All of my cameras
are fully functional and they still make film for them. If you have
been following my Polaroid obsession, so far I have only shown
cameras that are fully functional.
When I started collecting the I-Zone
cameras, I had to learn to accept my addiction. Hello, I am Aaron,
and I am a camera collector. The reason for my acceptance is that
these cameras don't take any kind of film that is available. Even the
expired film I have found has not worked in them. They are officially
for legacy only. They also may exist as a cautionary tale!
Dr. Edwin Land, the inventor of
Polaroid, was very much against making cheap, mass consumer products.
His idea was to allow everyone access to cameras and instant
development, but never at the cost of creating a bubble gum and sugar
cereal type product, and this is exactly what the I-Zones were. They
were marketed to children and tweens, and they were a powerful short
term market. They made them with bright colors, simple use, sticker
backing, and convenient size. They were an early version of the
facebook post. You snapped them, shared them, stuck them on your
wall, and wrote on them. Dr Land would have liked that part of the
product, as he wanted shooting instant film to be an event. What he
wouldn't have approved of is chasing the latest trend- the flash in
the pan. He was about long term innovation.
Business wise, they were the hare, when
Dr. Land preferred the tortoise. Not to say that he was slow, but he
was steady. Dr. Land actually has the second most patents secured
ever, with only Thomas Edison as his better. This “hare”
shareholder and bottom line mentality was eventually the death of
Polaroid.
So here is what collecting has become
to me. It is a legacy preserving action, the parts forming the whole
as a unique art piece. The collection is about content- not just
about surface. There is a deeper read. Obsolescence captures the
movement of time, and often the color, design, shape, and purpose of
the object captures the spirit of the era. Oh, yeah- it is fun, too.
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