Early on in my adventure as a photographer I submitted a few images I was very proud of to a small art photography magazine. This was the mid ’70’s and I actually received a rejection note, with the comment that my work was seen (negatively), as merely postcard photographs. I aspired to be Edward Weston or Dorothea Lange, so for a few days I was depressed, thinking that the work I had confidently submitted, was not as complex or beautiful, or insightful as I had imagined.
At some point, as if I went through a doorway into another room, I realized that making “postcard” images was not a bad thing, and I have happily enjoyed the thought that my photographs might have their own life wandering the world. I love the idea that something I’ve experienced; photographed and printed, rather than hanging silently alone on a bare wall, might be discovered by someone I’ve never met, decorated with a unique stamp and the personal writing from a friend.
My favorite images are created as collaborations with someone I meet, and the postcard as object allows that collaboration to extend to people I may never meet.
A Baker’s Dozen Assortment Set of Postcards
13 different images, $10 per set, free shipping
Jim Hair 