Ah, to cherish the good days when ethyl cost a paltry thirty cents. CU's special collections has a copy of Ed Ruscha's Twenty Six Gasoline Stations. Originally published in 1962 with later editions, it's a slim photo book with his intriguing photos of twenty-six gas stations in the West. He captures each station at various states of disrepair, modernity, emptyness, and life.
A mint copy of the book currently sells for a thousand or two. I expected a glossy version with a strong binding. Neither of those two expectations were met, and I wasn't able to open the book fully without fear of splitting the spine's glue.
Which I thinks speaks to the simplicity of the book and the photos. Most of the filling stations are empty save for a car or two and a person milling about. The photos do not fill the pages and the white negative space forces the reader to examine the structure and appearance of the gas station and the striking diversity and similarities in each station. Kate and I viewed his retrospective exhibit at the Art Institute while we were seeing the Winslow Homer watercolors and the fascinating, inspiring Edward Hopper exhibit. Ruscha's work covers several themes/views (parking lots, gas stations, apartments, buildings), but the gas stations were easily the most transfixing. Special collections has several of his books and my goal is to review what we've got while I can.
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