Ephemera Conference 26, 2006
Date: March 10-12, 2006
Location: Stamford, CT
Presentations:
This year’s ephemera conference features discussions on the history of Halloween, the truth about Victorian magic lanterns, ephemera in research at the Library Company of Philadelphia, printed ephemera at Winterthur and what ephemera reveals to medical scholars at UCLA. For more see the complete list of topics below.
Pamela Apkarian-Russell: “The History of Halloween” [EN v18n4 (2000)]
Pamela Apkarian-Russell, nicknamed the “Halloween Queen,” is a dealer in ephemera who has made the holiday her specialty. Her books include: Tastes & Smells of Halloween, Collectible Halloween, Postmarked Yesterday, The Art of the Holiday Postcard, and Salem Witchcraft and Collectibles. Her articles have been published in magazines and newspapers here and in the United Kingdom, and she has appeared on the Martha Stewart television show. In 2005, she and her husband Chris Russell, opened a museum, Castle Halloween, in the old Boggs Run Road Elementary School, Benwood, West Virginia. Along with ephemera from the Golden Age of Halloween (1920 and earlier), it features paintings used by Dennison for their crepe paper, a silk screen of Andy Warhol’s Dracula, contemporary folk art, and Harry Potter memorabilia.
Wendy Woloson: “Research Topics in Ephemera at the Library Company of Philadelphia” [EJ v13 (2010), 28-40]
Wendy Woloson has been with the Library Company of Philadelphia since 1993 and is now the Curator of Printed Books, a position which she has held since 2004. She received her Ph.D. in American civilization from the University of Pennsylvania and published her dissertation as Refined Tastes: Sugar, Consumers, and Confectionery in Nineteenth-Century America (The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2002). Currently she is working on a book-length history of pawnbroking in America. A trained printmaker, she also teaches classes at a local Philadelphia art center.
John G. Sayers: “Ocean Liners – Style and Social Icons”
Canadian John Sayers is a member and Board member of the Ephemera Society of America, is on the executive board of the Toronto Postcard Club, and is a member of The Ephemera Society (U.K.). Mr. Sayers, who resides in Toronto, is a long-time collector of ocean liner ephemera and memorabilia.
Jessica Helfand: “Ephemera Reconsidered – New Work from Winterhouse”
Jessica Helfand and William Drenttel are partners in Winterhouse, a design studio in Northwest Connecticut. Their work focuses on publishing and editorial development; new media; and cultural, educational, and literary institutions. They are also co-founding editors of Design Observer, the leading weblog for design, visual, and cultural journalism online. (www.designobserver.com)
Dick Moore: “The Truth about Victorian Hotel Rats and Cats & Other Magic Lantern Delights”
Dick Moore is Secretary/Treasurer of the Magic Lantern Society of the U.S. and Canada, and a member of the Magic Lantern Society of the U.K. Building on strong interest in Victorian entertainment, he has been collecting lanterns, slides, and related ephemera for 12 years, and presents shows for historical, holiday, and private or public entertainment events.
E. Richard McKinstry: “Ephemera Across the Atlantic – Printed Ephemera in the Winterthur Museum”