Caroline sent me these photos of the demise of a small white table, day by day. It’s a tragic tale.
Tuesday at 7am
Wednesday at 7am
Thursday at 7am
Friday at 7am
Friday at 5pm it was no more.
A table tale
Mr Toad
Last week I met the loveliest toad on my road. He was an elderly toad and walked at a leisurely pace. I helped him cross the road and thought ‘How lovely to have met such a toad.’ I am sorry to say four days after meeting Mr Toad, I found him lying peacefully on the side of the road. He looked like he was sleeping, but he wasn’t. I picked him up and took him to sit by our pond as I thought he might just be exhausted. He was still there in the morning so he is now buried by the pond. I have decided to draw Mr Toad and imagine his life before I met him. He looks sad because of his toad mouth but I think he was just a great thinker.
This was middle aged Mr Toad, thinking of retirement and of exotic ponds.
When I see discarded furniture, I think of you
I met one of my Mum’s friends for the first time this weekend and she said that she loved my discarded furniture project and always thinks of me when she sees them. It’s amusing and lovely in equal measures to be thought about as someone sights what most people would consider waste or rubbish. She had been in the car many times with my Mum as she stopped to photograph a sofa.
We had a good conversation about how people’s furniture, especially sofa’s are intimate items. Whilst thinking about how I personify them, I started to imagine how much of their owners life they have witnessed. I thought of the neglected chair, that was bought for show and then turfed out when no longer fashionable or the worn out re-upholstered sofa that has given such comfort over the years. They all have such stories to tell and are such characters; an extension perhaps of the people who sit on them.
It’s part of the family
I have been taking photos of discarded furniture (specifically seating) for 5 years ish now and this has spread to my family. A week rarely goes by that my Mum or Dad don’t send me a photo of a piece of furniture they have spotted. Recieving these texts make me smile, as not only is there another one to see and add to the collection but they took the time to document it for me. It feels like a gift. I think about how they stopped the car, poised their phones and got home later as a result. It means a lot to me. Here they are:
Time to get organised!
My mission for this year is to categorise and get some order to my ever growing discarded furniture photo collection. It’s just a relief that I don’t collect the actual furniture itself, otherwise I would be surrounded! By the end of the year I want them to be mapped. This is going to be a lengthy administrative challenge, but I think the final result will be worth it. I need to stop looking at my feet and snap into action!
There are quite a few where I don’t know their specific location. I am going to have to think of a way to categorise these so they are still on the map. I am excited as I can imagine how it’s going to look and work. Better get to work!
A spotter, spotted!
Today, whilst I was photographing this garish pair, I was spotted by a friend who was about to text me to tell me about these delights. Imagine if when people saw discarded seating and thought of me in the same moment, that meant I was then transported to that location. What adventures I’d have.
However, it might be a bit inconvenient at times…
Birmingham treats!
I went to Birmingham for the weekend to visit my family and whilst there we went for a walk along the river cole. It is rare that I visit and we don’t visit the river, but this time we went even further than usual. One thing I was surprised to see was such a variety of birds. There were seagulls, pigeons, ducks, magpies, a robin…and those were only the ones I could identify with my poor knowledge and experience in bird spotting!
We got to a road and thought we better loop back. On this road there was a discarded sofa (which had the remains of snow on it) and an armchair. There was also a sign in a door window saying ‘No Broken picture frames’ which was the topic of conversation on our way homewards.
Later on me and my Brother went on a sunset seeking mission and on the way spotted a pink chair trapped behind a metal fence with lots of other stuff.
