Tho photos work best outside of context, and certainly without "Halloween decorations on all the blank pages," as another reviewer suggested.
This is a macabre art book... "found art" created by anonymous people of past times, the art being both in the documentary nature of the unprofessional imperfect snapshots made on black and white film using not the greatest cameras (but not "bad" either, just off enough to enhance the sense of mystery), and more especially in the "Otherness" created by the subjects of the snapshots.
Originally the snapshots were taken by friends or family of people in costume, at a time when most Halloween costumes were homemade, and Halloween was still a time to look weird and scary, and wasn't so associated with store-bought cross-marketed super-hero or princess dress-up." The photos are here presented simply, unaltered, without explanatory text beyond the the preface and introductory notes. It is this presentation that helps them to take on a mysterious, even scary, power. The pictures are helped along if the viewer possesses a "what's happening in the shadows" sort of imagination, and the possible contexts provided by the viewer can add real value to this collection. I don't even like to think "Halloween" when I see these old photos. I rather look at them as a window through which one can see, and imagine, a context or story or just a feeling, of something very strange, something I don't want to know about but can't look away from.. It gives me the same sort of vibe that the first season of True Detective sometimes delivered with its odd byways briefly pointed to, but left undeveloped and unexplained, something potentially horrifying because of the lack of investigation and resolution, and also of the short fiction of Thomas Ligotti... precisely because the "reveal" isn't given and enough space and ambiguity is provided to allow mysterious possibilities to hang and fester in a darker closet within the viewer's imagination, which, depending on the viewer, is an always potentially darker place than any media can reveal and explain.
Anyway, it isn't a book about Halloween, the history of Halloween, a mere scrapbook, or not only these things... The homemade costumes are, outside of the Halloween context, or even within it, outright spooky, and they are presented in an uncluttered and simple way so that each image can open up a mystery for the imagination to create possible narratives for, and the imagination doesn't even need words to open up possible worlds suggested by the photos. Simply spend some time with one photo, and forget Halloween, and let your mind be guided to possible other frightening or strange places and possibilities. Also, check out Cyclobe, one of the central musical projects of Ossian Brown. That music goes very well with these photos, and hearing what Brown does with music (or part of what he does, as his involvement in music and other creative pursuits is diverse) gives one a better understanding of why this collection exists and is presented in this manner... not necessary, but does add some insight into Mr. Brown's proclivities. David Lynch's contribution is minimal, but I can certain understand why he would love these pictures.
Highly recommended for any who know of and enjoy the work of any of the names I've dropped here.
Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.
Customers who viewed this item also viewed
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
Historical look at homemade costumes, also what appears as a defect is intentional ....
I bought a new copy of this book, interested in the ways Halloween was celebrated in past generations, and before costumes could be bought in dime stores.But I was thrown by what appeared to be a stain inside the front cover (image included, click to expand). As it looked possibly to be part of the print design, I did a search on Google and found the exact same stain as in my book in the image included by a past reviewer here. They had assumed it was a defect and gave the book a poorer rating thinking that it was not in fact a 'new' copy. It is instead an intentional part of the inner cover print (however not fully thought out by the publisher IMHO). I'm including pictures here in case anyone sees this and wonders the same (who wouldn't?).Overall, the book is a great presentation of generations past and their celebrations of the Halloween holiday in various ways.
Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
Not a cute Halloween scrapbook, rather a collection of mysterious windows into macabre possibilities
Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2016
Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2013
Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2019
Reviewed in the United States on February 25, 2013
Top reviews from other countries
dollie
Molto particolare
Reviewed in Italy on June 14, 2021
dollie
Reviewed in Italy on June 14, 2021
Sicuramente molto interessate e pittoresco per chi come me ama la festività di Halloween ma può essere interessante anche per gli amanti della fotografia.
Images in this review
Macario Taboada
Mágico
Reviewed in Mexico on October 28, 2018
Macario Taboada
Reviewed in Mexico on October 28, 2018
Images in this review
R.Torre
Me sorprendió para bien de lo bueno que es
Reviewed in Spain on December 1, 2016Amazon Customer
Beautiful Unique Oddity
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 10, 2016