This Week: travelbrochuregraphics.com

Art deco objects and ephemera are among the most collectible antiques, and are often tremendously expensive. To find an unplundered area of art deco design–with items that aren't considered to be worth much by dealers–would be quite a feat. But David Levine has done just that, creating his own collecting niche with European travel brochures of the '20s and '30s. While they may not have the visceral impact of art deco posters, these pamphlets nevertheless have lovely designs of equal merit. As no one else seems to seriously collect these bits of art deco ephemera, the 34-year-old vice president of Thomson Financial in San Francisco has bought thousands of them, posting many to his website, travelbrochuregraphics.com. While the site itself may not be esthetically pleasing, the brochure art certainly is–and there are over 1,000 images available for your viewing pleasure. Levine has had the site up since November of 2001 and plans on adding another 2,000 brochures.

How did you first discover European travel ephemera?

After I could not find a job when I finished graduate school in May 1992, I went to Prague, where I ended up working for an Austrian investment bank. On my way, we stopped in London where, after visiting the British Museum, I wandered into an antiquarian bookshop on Museum Street, near the Museum. As I told on my website, I found a small brochure, which caught my eye. I had always liked art deco design graphics, particularly art deco travel posters, but in the U.S. I had never seen the small brochures or booklets that I now found in Europe. So I bought it, thinking it was a "one-off." Prague was (and still is, I am told) full of antiquarian bookstores. Not only did they sell books, but they also sold old paper items. So one day, I found a bin of old paper items, which I had never seen in the U.S. That was it–I was hooked. I became a regular across the city and I visited flea markets out of town. I also purchased other paper items including books and, in the two years I lived in Prague, sent over 250 KG of paper home to the U.S.

What was it about these items that attracted you to them?

I love art deco design and had always loved art deco travel posters. However, the posters are expensive–anywhere from $300 to $5,000 per one. The travel brochures, which often had the same exact images, were in Prague at often less than $1 per one brochure, at that time. I just love sharp, geometric graphics, and I suppose I also love the 1920s' and 1930s' lost of age of elite travel–when the whole family saw you off at the dock and you went to Europe for two months. But I think it is more the images that got my eye. I especially love the graphic design that came out of the Bauhaus and have made my pilgrimage to Dessau and Weimar.

How have you gone about collecting them?
How big is your collection?

My collection is over 4,000 items currently. I buy from many dealers around the world whom I have met at shows, in shops, on eBay, on the Internet, and through other collectors.

How "collectible" are these items?
Do many people seek them out?

In my opinion, they are not very collectible in the exact sense that I collect them. I am the only person that I know who collects exactly what I collect. Other people collect airline paper or steamship paper or paper dealing with certain artists or countries, but not whole periods of design the way I do. This has led to confusion on the part of dealers as well as fellow collectors. There are few other buyers who buy travel items or specific companies. There are a few on eBay that maybe have similar tastes.

Have they become more in demand since you first started buying them?

I can't say that they have. Prices have not changed. I just don't think that there is that big a market for them. There is a base price for which these things sell and what that is depends on where and from whom you buy it–online, on eBay, at a show, in a shop, in Europe. In each case, you have to cover their overhead.

What things do you look for in choosing items to buy?

The strongest, most interesting and unique graphics, from my point of view (of course). The more art deco or Bauhaus influenced, the better. Also, the "hunt" is part of the fun–i.e. finding the dealer that sells what you want, e-mailing/writing them, looking on eBay, etc… The actual act of possession is sometimes a disappointment.

Do you limit yourself to only travel ephemera from the '20s and '30s?
Why?

I do limit myself. It's what I like and I just do not have the same passion about other periods. That being said, there are things I like in other periods. However, there is just far, far too many things out there and one has to draw the line so a healthy obsession does not become a curse!

Is such graphic design in travel brochures a "lost art" these days?

Many people would say yes, but I would answer the question "no." What I mean is that there is a lot of great graphic design out there, in many, many different formats, in print and on the web and in film, video and so on. My exact period and taste is certainly gone–but there is much else that has occurred since that is great. Everything is a product of its time and I would not want to see a return to my style today. It would be wrong. There is such cool design out there right now that I have to stop myself from accumulating new things, and stay focused on my period.

What's your favorite piece?

Wow that's hard. Probably the one that got me started, and some things I have not yet posted to my website.

Are there any books on the subject?
Have you thought of doing a book yourself?

Oh there are many–Chronicle Books in San Francisco has a whole series on the period and these come closest to my collection, and there have been many on posters and certain artists. As for doing a book, I am sure I will at some point but I just do not have the time right now to do it. I would love to however.

Why did you decide to devote a website to your collection?

Many friends and fellow dealers have asked to see the collection but it is hard to transport and difficult to explain because it is so visual. Finally, my wife said, "Why don't you do something with your collection other than keep buying more–why don't you make a website?" Her suggestion, and the existence of many other personal collection websites, was the trigger. Also, the existence of software from both Microsoft and Adobe that makes it so easy to do it made it attractive. Finally, many people had no idea of the extent and depth of my collection, and did not fully grasp its size until they saw my website. So it has helped me gain additional credibility with dealers, because my area of interest is so narrow. My items are often obtained by dealers when they buy a whole lot. They are also often not the valuable parts of the lots they buy so being credible makes it easier to get them to bring their stuff to shows, where they focus on selling bigger-ticket items.

What kinds of reactions have you gotten?

I have gotten hugely favorable feedback. Some comments (see the guestbook) have brought tears to my eyes. People, especially those in the graphic design industry, seem to get immense pleasure and inspiration from it, and that makes me happy. Also, a number of people have connected personally with places depicted–a German whose family once owned a hotel in what became East Germany, a child of refugees from the Nazis who saw a brochure for a place his mother had spent her summers.

What would you like to do with the site in the future?

I would love to post the rest of my collection (maybe 2,000 more items would qualify). I would also love to add more background data on the artists and the designs and turn it into a true archive. There are many graphic design magazines from the 1920s/1930s that are primary sources for research on this period and my dream is to digitize those magazines and scan and hyperlink and index everything so the website could be a true archive of the period and its design.

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