Somehow Mental Floss (Where Knowledge Junkies Get Their Fix) uncovered Photo-of-the Day by Jamie Livingston, the not-yet-public website Hugh Crawford and Betsy Reid created for Jamie Livingston’s 6000+ Polaroids. Because it’s a work-in-progress site (a Beta site), there are no names on it, no credits. No contact information. Nothing.
It took Chris Higgens at Mental Floss some time to figure out Jamie’s name. Or to learn that it was Hugh Crawford and Betsy Reid who spent years putting the site together after Jamie Livingston died.
“Yesterday I came across a slightly mysterious website — a collection of Polaroids, one per day, from March 31, 1979 through October 25, 1997. There’s no author listed, no contact info, and no other indication as to where these came from. So, naturally, I started looking through the photos. I was stunned by what I found.”
Higgens did some impressive Internet detective work to find out more about Jamie. He discovered OTBKB and learned the story.
What started for me as an amusing collection of photos — who takes photos every day for eighteen years? — ended with a shock. Who was this man? How did his photos end up on the web? I went on a two-day hunt, examined the source code of the website, and tried various Google tricks. Finally my investigation turned up the photographer as Jamie Livingston, and he did indeed take a photo every day for eighteen years, until the day he died, using a Polaroid SX-70 camera. He called the project “Photo of the Day” and presumably planned to collect them at some point — had he lived. He died on October 25, 1997 — his 41st birthday.
After Livingston’s death, his friends Hugh Crawford and Betsy Reid put together a public exhibit and website using the photos and called it JAMIE LIVINGSTON. PHOTO OF THE DAY: 1979-1997, 6,697 Polaroids, dated in sequence. The physical exhibit opened in 2007 at the Bertelsmann Campus Center at Bard College (where Livingston started the series, as a student, way back when). The exhibit included rephotographs of every Polaroid and took up a 7 x 120 foot space.
Because of that post (and others), thousands of people are visiting the Jamie site and OTBKB to find out more about Jamie Livingston
Apparently a bunch of Spanish language newspapers picked up the story today and the volume of visitors caused the Jamie site to crash in the middle of the night. That problem is being remedied as we speak.
I heard Hepcat speaking loudly on the telephone at 3 am and it woke me up. Turns out he was on the phone with the people from Host Monster, trying to get them to restore the site. It should be up and running soon. We hope.
There are so many interesting comments on Mental Floss and other places that have picked up the story. Over and over people are saying that it’s one of the most moving things they’ve ever seen on the Internet.
Indeed, the story of Jamie’s life and work is an incredible one. Here’s an excerpt from the post I run every October 25, the day Jamie died, which happened to be his birthday. Every October 25th is Jamie Livingston Day at OTBKB. This post was originally called, On Polaroids and Lasting Friendship.
When Jamie Livingston, photographer, filmmaker, circus performer, accordian player, Mets fan, and above all, loyal friend, died on October 25th (his birthday) in 1997 at the age of 41, he left behind hundreds of bereft friends and a collection of 6,000 photographs neatly organized in small suitcases and wooden fruit crates.
Jamie took a polaroid once a day, every day, including his last, for 18 years.
This photographic diary, which he called, “Polaroid of the Day,” or P.O.D., began when Jaime was a student at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson. The project continued when he moved to apartments in New York City including the incredible circus memorabilia-filled loft on Fulton Street, which he shared with his best friend Chris Wangro.
That loft was the site of many a Glug party, an “orphans thanksgiving,” a super-8 festival of Jamie’s lyrical Super-8 films, and a rollicking music jam.The picture taking continued as Jamie traveled the world
with the Janus Circus, the circus-troupe founded by Chris Wangro, and later when he became a much-in-demand cinematographer and editor of music videos back in the early days of MTV. He contributed his talents to the ground-breaking Nike “Revolution” spot and many other commercials, too. Through it all he took pictures, made movies, and loved his friends. And the Polaroids reflect all of that: a life bursting with activity, joy and sadness, too.Jamie brought his camera wherever he went. As one friend said, “It probably helped his social life because everyone wanted to be in a photo of the day.” It was always interesting to see what Jaime deemed worthy of a P.O.D. My husband remembers his own 30th birthday party in his photo studio on Ludlow Street: “Hundreds of people filled my loft and the party snaked down Ludlow Street to Stanton. But what did Jamie take a picture of? A potato chip or something. It was a gorgeous shot, though.”
But more often than not, the photos were of friends, family, himself, special places he had visited, or just something that caught his discriminating eye. And if he’d been to a Mets Game that day, that was it — a Mets game was always a worthy P.O.D.
And the pictures are utterly gorgeous miracles of photographic artistry. The color, the light, the time lapse swirls, the unerring composition. Whether it was a still life of what he’d eaten for dinner, an unblinking shot of his beloved grandfather (Pops), or swooningly romantic portraits of his beautiful wife or ex-girlfriends, any one of these photographs should be in a museum collection. But perhaps more importantly, Jamie’s friends and the world need access to these pictures, which is why his devoted friends have been talking for years about ways to exhibit this massive body of work.
The fact that so many people are discovering the life and work of Jamie Livingston via the Mental Floss site is unbelievably gratifying to Hepcat. Yes he’s a little overwhelmed at the moment and is trying to figure out how to resuscitate the Jamie site, all of this attention is a great way to honor a beautiful man and artist who died at the age of 41.
A random stroll through each year of pictures lead me to go back to the beginning and look at the photo either on or around his birthday each year. A touching look at his group of birthday friends from year to year. Overall an incredible body of work from this Polaroid genius.
Jamie and I worked together during the mid 1990’s on a number of projects. We lost touch right about when he became seriously ill. Thanks for posting this. My photo is 01-15-96. His SX-70 will be sorely missed.
LMS
I actually started a Flickr group in Jamie’s honor when I ran across the Mental Floss blog and your other entry about the exhibition last night. I wanted to honor his achievement and keep the spark of what he did alive. I hope that’s okay. And I hope you get your hosting troubles worked out. You should put a donate button up.
Best,
Jenie Clark
I was really moved by this project and I want to thank Chris for sharing what he found with us over at Mental Floss (even if it was a bit prematurely) and Thanks to Jamie’s friends for sharing Jamie’s life with the world. It really made an impression on my heart. Thank you Jamie Livingston.
found your story from a starcraft website – we were all very moved by this. Im eager to see the rest of the photos…what a powerful project..
thanks for sharing them
R.I.P.
Tremendously moving. It is a great honour not just to Jamie Livingston, who must have been quite a guy to have friends so loyal this many years later, but also to yourselves for putting together such a tribute.
Thank you for what is really a gift to everyone who will chance along the site.
There is a site that allows for similar projects… Daily Mugshot is a free service which lets you chronicle images of yourself and share them as an animated sequence. Pretty similar, but Web 2.0 with widgets etc… http://www.dailymugshot.com
This work had an intriguing impact on me. For reasons I don’t quite understand I found myself misty eyed. I have no direct connection to this individual, yet I was touched by the images and found myself reflecting on my own life and mortality. Thank you for efforts.
As a regular mental flosser, I loved Chris’ article and immediately started looking at those wonderful and often mundane photos (which is what makes them so precious).
I didn’t get to go through all of the photos and sadly the site is down. I’ll be back when the photos are to enjoy some more of this incredible work.
Hey, this story is just amazing… I also wish people would remember me this way the day I’m gone. I hope I can see the physical exposition in the Bard College this summer, I’m traveling all the way from Mexico in my motorcycle. Also, if you need hosting space let me know, I’ve got some terabytes more than I need.
Finally! someone who in our lifetime is making history by a simple act of bieng who he was without having a history of unnecessarily exploited lifestyle of drugs and extravagant lifestyle. Almost feels like it was faith and fortune for anyone who came upon this story to realize the things we take for granted thanks to our dying generation. Jamie Livingston you were and are going to be remembered you have done well.
Thank you.
It appears that he lived,a happt and full life.
What a curious way to chronicle it.
Hey folks – Came here from Mental Floss and this whole story just blows me away. God Bless Jamie Livingston, and you guys for making his story available online.
Very amazing find… and creepy too
A beautiful, compelling and ultimately sad story. I enjoyed the read, and look forward to the site coming back up.
As such, I would like to offer some web hosting space and bandwidth. While not unlimited, it should help to provide a mirror for the site.
Please contact me at my email address if you are interested.
Wow, what a great work of art. I’ll post to my blog as soon as this is back up.
-Ryan
http://www.mofata.com
I teach communications and the importance of speaking honestly and from the heart. What an example Jamie’s artwork is to us all.
I want Jamie’s friends to know that he is indeed making an impact.
Matter of fact, I’m starting a personal video record, inspired by his idea.
Let’s hope that, with modern technology making it an easy thing technically, I have the fortitude to keep it going.
What good friends you folks are for keeping his memory and art alive.
BEST wishes to you
Wow. This really got to me. I wish people would remember me this way when I’m gone. What a wonderful tribute to a life that obviously meant a lot to many people.
If your hosting company doesn’t come through for you, let me know. I’d like to help.
It’s always a pleasure to see a life well lived. Looking forward to seeing a “trail” of one persons life. I’m so used to reading biographies that SEEING one should be a treat. Thank you!
Fantastic find, interesting, poignant and thought provoking…
Wow, I cannot wait to see the site. I’m completely touched by the posts I’ve read and look forward to getting a glimpse of Jamie’s life.
I so look forward to seeing the website. The story literally brought me to tears.
JJ
http://www.Privacy-Center.net
Hi Louise and Hugh,
What a lovely tribute to your friend Jamie.
Thank you for sharing his pictures and his life with us.
This story is just beautiful.
Katia
I look forward to seeing the website. The photos I’ve seen thus far are wonderful and, in the end, very moving. Thanks to your friends for doing this wonderful work. And it looks as though Jamie’s life in photographs will live on …
Hi guys — glad to hear you’re working with the hosting company. And I’m sorry to have sent so much unexpected traffic…but like you said, the reaction has been almost uniformly one of joy at Jamie’s work. I’m watching interest in the site spread hour by hour, and frankly have never seen something be picked up so broadly so quickly. It’s all over photography blogs, somehow got translated into Spanish early on, and spent quite a bit of time at the top of Digg.com overnight.
Thank you for putting together Jamie’s photos, and for keeping us posted during this unexpected Thursday-morning onslaught!
-Chris Higgins