Thursday, September 17, 2009

Found
Well here's something different - I had never seem these before - well, until yesterday - found them at the George Eastman House Collection on Flickr. "Large Photographic Buttons were popular from 1900 to 1930. In their time the large buttons were commonly referred to as medallions and plaques. Most incorporate a photograph into a decorative border and the back has either a hook for hanging or an easel stand for propping. The borders were mass-produced and handpicked by the customer from samples and sample sheets. Buttons that are small enough to fit in a closed fist are most often true buttons with a pin-back, or have mirrors on the back and are referred to as pocket mirrors. Buttons of all kinds were purchased from door-to-door salesmen, photography studios, and through catalogs." So there - now we know - and there'll be a quiz later!


I'm generally not a big fan of Victorian graphics - I prefer earlier stuff and later stuff. But I tell ya, they really knew how to design with florals. A person can learn a lot from these graphics.