I opted to get off a stop earlier on my way to the hotel for the ride home and check out the MoMA gift shop since I knew they’d be open late because it was a Friday. (Uniqlo Fridays are from 4-8pm when the public is allowed to enter the museum free.). They always have new postcard offerings and their sale rack always has a robust selection. The only thing is that while the rack is labeled “SALE”, they have no price tags. Regular postcards sell for $1.25 to $2.00, and the postcards that were on sale went for .25 and .50 cents. You can’t go wrong with that!!
I took my pick of 8-10 postcards, trying not to splurge, and milled around. I spied an Andy Warhol postcard book which I almost grabbed, but I thought I’d get some lenticular (3d) postcards instead. Walking to the check out line, though, I saw a special rack dedicated to items focusing on Ansel Adams. And there it was, a postcard set (not a book) of Ansel Adams photography. Ansel Adams won out and I happily grabbed it..
Not to say that I think Ansel Adams is a better or bigger artist than Andy Warhol — I have great respect for these two names who are superstars in their respective genre (photography and pop art respectively) — but I figured I could always go back for the Warhol. While I try not to fall prey to procrastination when it comes to postcard buys (“I’ll grab it next time.”), I try not to go overboard with the postcard shopping. I could’ve grabbed both but I thought that was a bit much.
The art postcards which were on sale will be a good addition to my collection and for trading with others with a preference for non-touristy postcards.
I’ve been going through my vintage postcard collection and sorting out what I can get rid of, either by way of trading them off, selling them on eBay or just giving them to someone who would be able to use them for their collection. I’ve pretty much confined my antique/vintage preferences to Philippines, New York, and other places we’ve visited like Paris and Brugge. I acquired these other antique postcards through other postcard lots I had bought or received in previous years. I figure someone would find value in them as part of their collection or as plain ephemera for other use.
Any takers? Email me at postcardmailbox@gmail.com with “vintage postcards” in the subject line.
Meanwhile, here’s to Ansel Adams and the MoMA..=).
Pinay New Yorker 