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Rockett St George's
new old photos

This is just up my street: slightly creepy old stuff, with a quirky new angle (just like my Victorian dolls' heads mounted under a perspex Muji CD holder).
Clockwise from left: The FamilyThe Brothers; Mr & Mrs

These black and white photographs are new in at Rockett St George, which picked them up from an artist in Paris. They'd be wonderful photos on their own, but – in line with the name "Vintage Twist" – these old things have been given a joyful juxtaposition, with the addition of small details painted on. They have also been enlarged and are excellently imposing at at 64cm x 53cm (for The Family) 59cm x 42 (for The Brothers) 47cm x 58cm (Mr & Mrs). They are, being decent sized bits of original art, however not at all cheap at £295 a piece. If you are a) not feeling flush and b) handy with a spot of Photoshop (and have access to a scanner), you could always have a go at creating your own version. You could even go old school. With actual real paint and everything.

You can find heaps of old photos on eBay, for sale as job lots. I find these sorts of things fascinating as they are, and would happily pin them up unadorned around the house. In fact, I have several strangers dotted about the house (see below). It might seem odd to have photos of complete randoms decorating your home, but I like to look at them and imagine who they were, what they might have done after the picture was taken, if they had happy lives...

Clockwise from top left:

  • I picked up this pymca postcard "1980 Ska Girls" at last year's Vintage at Southbank festival. You can buy a print of it from the pymca online shop, starting at £50
  • I don't know where this little person came from, a charity shop somewhere I think. I don't even know if it's a boy or a girl but I like his/her chubby little face and the sweet way he/she, only just standing up alone, is gripping the chair for stability
  • This is another postcard, bought at my local Lambeth Country Show, a kind of freaky urban/rustic event that excellently combines Red Stripe, live reggae and ducks doing obstacle courses. It is from a local portrait photographer's studio in the 1960s. I love how quietly cheeky she looks in that amazing outfit
  • This is probably a cheat as I know who these people are – though I don't know them personally. It's from a set of postcards advertising Allegra McEvedy's first Leon cookbook (a stunning compendium, so much more than a recipe book), which I picked up at its launch party. You have to love a bit of a 1970s car/picnic shot
  • This last shot is a total mystery. I came across a flea market stall selling piles of old photos, while on holiday in New York years ago. Who she is I'll never know. But I always wonder if she was that stern off-camera...

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