STORY
PROJECT OVERVIEW
From 2010 to 2013, I drove around Los Angeles County collecting lost and found animal posters.
Being a huge animal lover myself, I set a rule for my project… I had to see at least three identical posters in a one-block area in order to take one (to not defeat the owners quest of finding their animal).
For three years, I drove tirelessly all over L.A. County, from South Central to Palmdale and from Venice to East L.A. in order to incorporate the many cultures of Los Angeles into the posters themselves.
Back in 2010, I realized that I possessed a true form of Folk Art -- hand-drawn, hand-painted posters made by ordinary people. They were meditations on the mundane. At this time I foresaw the rise of these posters becoming fully digitized templates and felt that the form of Folk Art displayed in these posters had every right to be preserved and viewed for years to come.
If every piece of art has a story, some pieces of art have deeper and more meaningful stories than others. These posters tell the story about the times and places in which we are living. The posters use the combined artistic mediums of graphic and visual arts, illustration, and photography in a poetic and cohesive collage of raw emotion to tell their tale.
I went on to find posters of dogs, cats, dragons, unicorns, clip-art bunnies, toucans, and many more. In total, I collected over 2,000 posters amassing the world’s largest collection of this form of Folk Art.
After my collection for this book came to a close. I started an Instagram account which is now getting submissions from around the world. Posters from such places as: Argentina, Chile, Japan, China, Russia, Mexico, Canada, all of the United States, and Europe.
The Instagram has even helped reconnect people with their lost and found animals.
MORE INFO ABOUT THE PROJECT
STILL MISSING is a beautifully designed art book exploring the folk art of lost & found pet posters. Featuring nearly 200 pages of high quality full-color images and illustrations.
A curatorial voyage through the world of lost and found pet posters that combines graphic and visual arts, illustration, and photography in a poetic and cohesive collage of raw emotion. Art connoisseurs and casual observers of all backgrounds, interests, and ages will find their own deep resonance within its pages.
It is a collection of art by everyone, for everyone. This book truly speaks worlds about the human condition. It’s strange, it's weird, it's funny, it's beautiful, it's creative and yes...it's also sad. From toucans to tortoises, roosters to ferrets and dragons to unicorns, it will always keep you guessing with what’s coming next.
What is the largest reward for a cat? What is the smallest reward for a turtle? What's the strangest pet name? What's the most unique poster material? What's the biggest or the smallest poster I've ever found? It's all in the details... STILL MISSING will answer all of these questions, while provoking even more.
PROJECT RULES:
- All posters collected in Los Angeles County from 2010 - 2013.
- Rules for collecting: to take a single poster, at least three identical posters must be observed within a given one block area, to not defeat the owners’ quest of finding their animal.
- Respect, preserve and transmit the message of the poster as displayed when first encountered.