Une exposition extraordinaire...

Exhibition poster from the Musée de l'Elysée

I've only just returned from our quick jaunt to Lausanne, Switzerland and I can't stop thinking about what a great time it was.  The exhibition was held in the beautiful Musée de l'Elysée, an historic chateau overlooking the Lac Leman.  The show proved to be one of the, if not the most, comprehensive art exhibitions dedicated to the art and history of the photo booth.  Works by artists from as diverse a range as Andy Warhol, Richard Avedon, Cindy Sherman, the Surrealists Andre Breton, Yves Tanguy, and Max Ernst, et al, through the years right up to the present with currently working artists were presented.  The scope and depth of research was truly stunning and the presentation was excellent.  All the presenters, curators, and assistants did a great job pulling it all together.  Check out their site for more information about the show and photo booth artwork.

And it was great seeing friends from Chicago--Anthony, Andrea, and Rob at A&A Studios--set up their refurbished Model 20 for the guests of the exhibition to use.  The booth was put through its paces, working overtime and battling overheating hardware, as everyone got in on the action.  The strips will be included in a future exhibition of photo booths.  Here is our take...

Retro in profile.

I really enjoyed meeting some of the other artists and photo booth enthusiasts who made the trip.  Brian from Photobooth.net was there filming shots for a new documentary. Carole and Siobhan from Photomovette in England, Victoria from the West Coast USA, and Lauren from Chicago, all totally cool chicks down with all things photo booths.  German artist Jan Wenzel, Nakki Goranin signing her book, American Photobooth, and New York-based artists Daniel Minnick and Anita Cruz-Eberhard.  And of course, it was good times hanging out with the 312photobooth guys in Europe.

The trip was much too short, as most of the time they are, but we all left encouraged and inspired to learn more and do more.  It was really refreshing to meet and talk to so many other vintage camera, photo booth, and everything-analog junkies out there.  It seems that a vintage revival is upon us and the enthusiasm of the show and the breadth of the exhibition just proves that the photochemical booth is here to stay.  

The view wasn't too shabby either...