Influx

We are a culture of curiosity – blogs, reality t.v. – anything to give us a glimpse into lives other than our own. Another trend to add to the growing list are found objects.

One web site is an archive of found home recordings; one of a kind cassette tape recordings and other sounds that were discovered by one man who has spent years searching thrift stores and garage sales.

found audio

The Trachtenburg Family (mom, dad and daughter) is a pop-rock group that takes vintage slide collections of anonymous strangers, found at estate sales, garage sales and thrift stores, and turns them into a musical performance.

found slides

Found Magazine is dedicated to collecting found stuff that both the staff and public have picked up – love letters, birthday cards, kids’ homework, to-do lists, ticket stubs, napkin poetry, doodles, etc.

found magazine

Why? Most would argue that voyeurism has permeated nearly every media channel, instigating a need to watch and listen, but there are more layers to consider. We love stories that range from the traditional biography to Eminem to brands like Ebay. We love knowing that there is more to people than what we first see, allowing us to relate in a way that doesn’t reveal our own personal stories. Marcel Duchamp was an early leader in the beauty of the found (or in his words, the “lost”). He believed art should trigger in each audience member his or her own personal narrative. Once regulated to the inside of a museum, the art of finding has now gone mass.