Tuesday, December 27, 2011

GARDEN OF EDEN ON WHEELS

CONTRIBUTIONS FROM
THE MUSEUM OF JURASSIC TECHNOLOGY:

I first came across the name of this extraordinary place when my friend Mitzi Pratt (NYC socialite) asked me to be meet her in what she called one of her favorite places in Los Angeles, The Museum of Jurassic Technology. After locating it in Culver City, I begin to understand why she likes it here so much. The exhibits in the museum cross the line between fact and fiction, between reality and imagination.
jurassic_front.jpg
Front of the museum in Culver City, Los Angeles

The collections of the museum, which was founded in 1989 and is being curated by David Hildebrand Wilson and Diana Wilson, span over three little buildings and consist of pieces from about a dozen sub-collections which are often centered around a certain subject such as belief and knowledge or personalities like Athanasius Kircher and their work. But, unlike what one might expect of a technology museum, throughout all of the exhibits, the boundaries between history and fiction, magic and reason, narrative and scientific method are in fact completely fluid (and the curators pleasurably make no effort to make things more clear, even indulge in elaborate descriptions and allusions that make it even more mysterious).
Many of the pieces consist of wonderfully crafted models and often amazing analog visual tricks for superimposing images. As a result, the whole space turns into a magical wunderkammer like I've rarely seen it, and probably one of the most astonishing approaches to the culture of art and technology on the planet.



The reason I mention this museum here is because of the outstanding exhibition I once saw there (which is part of the permanent collection) entitled, GARDEN OF EDEN ON WHEELS. This is a collection of model mobile homes and travel trailers  which glow and flicker in a darkened room, complete with sounds of a.m. radios and t.v.s playing from within and the distant sounds of crickets and campfires.

GARDEN OF EDEN ON WHEELS
















Here is some of the text the accompanies the exhibit:

"The house trailer is, of course, but a sub-set of the larger age-old category of mobile dwelling. From the Basque sheepherder tent/coat and Bedouin woven goat hair "blacktent" to Mongolian yurts, human ingenuity has created an astonishing array of portable dwellings. However, in America, it was the migratory worker and seasonal factory worker, tacking together small masonite trailers or packing up their home built housecars and assembling in camps as early as 1920; or, the evangelist, carpenter or salesman, who built their first trailer to follow some private dream; or simply the old time "trailerite" or auto camper, a casual, cantankerous and fiercely independent soul of the teens and twenties who together caused a brand new industry, mobile home production, to emerge and flourish right out of the depths of the Great Depression."

TO FIND OUT MORE GO TO: 

Selected Collections from Los Angeles Area Mobile Home and Trailer Parks  http://www.mjt.org/exhibits/eden/trailers.html

 

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Merry Christmas from Pinecrest!


All of us at Pinecrest would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Vintage Christmas cards are a unique and popular item to both collect and send. The holidays are truly a joyous time and the tradition of sending Christmas greetings has been going on for over a hundred years. The best thing about vintage Christmas cards is that you can be sure that you are sending out well wishes in a manner that will be appreciated, remembered and displayed proudly.

Where to find vintage Christmas cards

From flea markets to eBay, there are plenty of unused vintage Christmas cards still around. Occasionally warehouse finds of great quantities of Christmas cards from the 50s and 60s still turn up. Large companies and printers have stored these for decades and eventually they find their way onto the open market. The great thing about finding and buying these old store stock seasonal greeting cards is the cost. Often, an unopened box of vintage Christmas cards and envelopes can be purchased for less than the price of the modern (and often bland) equivalents. How great is it that a truly unique statement can be purchased for such a small sum? The people receiving the cards will be shocked to get an authentic 40 or 50-year-old card and it will make a great conversation starter at Christmas parties, too.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Pinecrest on Facebook


Pinecrest on Facebook

Pinecrest Retreat is emerging as a leader in the vintage trailer movement. Combining the best of the new and the old, park owners Frank and Kathleen are mindful of keeping the proper balance. While preserving the park's rich history of being a place for friends and families to gather and enjoy the simple pleasures of life (quiet times in natural settings), thoughtful, modern improvements continue to be made to ensure the positive growth in the future.

In addition to native plant restorations and a community garden, road surfaces have been kept all-natural and sustainable improvements have been made to the community bathhouse. The park now offers free yoga to members in summer and wi-fi access near the pool. Pinecrest maintains online news and information at its own facebook page, PINECREST RETREAT: For Members Only where members can get or post the latest news on weather conditions and special events. Pinecrest hosts Vintage Travel Trailer Aficionados for more general news about the vintage trailer movement and sometimes posting of trailers that have come available on craigslist or other places. And finally, Pinecrest has a blog "Pinecrest Resort" (http://pinecrestresort.blogspot.com) with a more permanent record of trailer trends and "Pinecrest Life". Keeping Pinecrest members connected through these online sites helps build a more vibrant community while creating an awareness of who we are and what we do to ensure positive growth in the future.