I have to say that inquiries about the images here can only be directed to the individual members of the group so any feeds you intend should fall within the normal flicker terms of use etc.

I think posing with a paper moon is mostly a North American tradition ( I am in the UK and those images are rare over here as far as I know). It would be good to get some interesting discussions on the issue.

Hi Art,

I'm OK with confetta using my images for her blog. She approached me first and I suggested that a link to her website from this group (or vice versa) might be a good idea if you approved it. She has compiled a lot of information and links about the subject on her blog.

I wrote a bit about what I know about the Paper Moon portrait craze in the comments of one of my photos. Let me see if I can find it so I don't have to write it here again from scratch.

All best,
Steven
(stevechasmar, chinatowncharlie2, Ephemerally Yours, Hepped-up on Goofballs)

OK, this is about I know about these portraits. Not much, admittedly...

The so-called paper moon portraits were known during the time of their popularity as "Man in the Moon" portraits. It was of course an American fad and, judging from the style of dress of the subjects, seems to have begun in the late 19th century. I have seen a couple of tintypes that suggest that these portraits may date as far back as the 1860s or 70s, but it seems they didn't boom in popularity until around 1900. Again, judging from the style of clothes of the subjects posing, I would say the popularity of these portraits reached a peak in the 1910s and 20s.

Besides being popular in America, and by extension Canada, this type of portrait spread to the Philippines (which was an American colony from 1898 until 1946) and, in a much smaller way, to Europe. I have seen a handful of these portraits that were taken in the UK and Germany, as well as one taken in Russia.

What I find really interesting about them is that they seem to have been a real departure from the formal studio portraits of the late nineteenth century. The portraits were cheap enough so that anybody could afford to have one taken. Besides studios, more informal "Man in the Moon" portrait booths could be found at arcades, carnivals and county fairs. Many of the people posing on the paper moons were obviously having a good time -- smiling and sometimes cavorting for the camera -- something that was almost never done in studio portraits of the day.

I think the popularity of Kodak's cameras eventually killed these paper moon portraits because people could then afford to take their own pictures, but for a few decades these portraits were probably the cheapest way of getting one's picture taken. Photobooth portraits too were surely a contributing factor to the disappearance of the paper moon portrait. Judging once again from the clothing of the subjects posing, I think the paper moon was starting to wane in popularity by the 1940s, and had all but disappeared by the 1950s.

Thanks Steve..that kind of tallies with just the assumptions I made from looking at the ones that crop up here on flickr. I particularly like the ones of romantic couples and of those who have clearly been out on the town..haha,

And of course there are many charming ones of same sex couples which often now get tagged "gay". I certainly don't have a problem with that but I suspect it is probably an over simplification in many cases of the subtleties and complexities of friendship between people.

Confetta. I put a link to your site in the group description.

Art (or do you prefer Paul?),

I certainly agree with you regarding the portraits tagged "gay". I think men were chummier back then -- at least judging from the poses. I also think I can safely say that modern American men are less likely to show such old-fashioned affection towards each other (unless of course they've had a few drinks) simply because they are reluctant to be "tagged as gay".

By the way, I am going to add to the pool the earliest example of a "paper moon" portrait that I have -- an old tintype. Here is the link to make it easier to find:

www.flickr.com/photos/opiummuseum/2882567275/

I expect my contribution to the group is possibly the latest - taken in the mid to late 40s. By the looks of it, it may have been a local fair - maybe even a school fair. The moon looks fairly amateur artistically.

Figured I'd add mine so we have (possibly) an earliest to latest: www.flickr.com/photos/yolise/63189611/in/pool-854838@N24

I have to wonder where the concept came from originally. It seems to have emerged pretty early in the history of portrait photography. Seems a bit random somehow!

I thought this would be a good addition as well: www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnbiVPiohgw

:-)

Thanks Steve-Paul is fine-its my "real" name haha. It is probably worthy of a study in itself. Public displays of affection in old photographs that is...

Thanks Yolise..that is a charming photograph too

Paul,

I just added a portrait to the group that I think we might be safe in tagging as "gay". The link is below. In Southeast Asia seeing men holding hands used to be a fairly common sight. At the same time, it was rather rare to see a man and woman holding hands in public. It's now reversed -- at least in urban areas. I wonder if some western academic has noticed this too and done a study on it?

www.flickr.com/photos/opiummuseum/2887315380/

That is a lovely photograph, and indeed it looks like they are certainly very happy in close physical proximity, limbs entwined etc. So serious though...

I grew up in Kenya and many African men used to hold hands in public too, in exactly the same way as you describe in South East Asia..I don't know now wheher it is less common. Western sensibilities do tend to percolate through other cultures in many ways that might be unexpected.

I think you may be right about western influences. In the more closed societies over here -- Burma and Laos come immediately to mind -- it is still much more common to see same-sex hand holding than the other way around.

You must see a lot of interesting stuff in your day to day life..

Steve??

Might I quote some of your text ?
(see bottom off this post)

I added that the pics in the flickr slideshow are used courtesy of YOU : )

If you'd like me to make your name a link to your flickr pages/web-site or what have you - I am happy to do so!

NOW I wanna make a Vintage Opium Page!!

I will be chasin' yuh down for awhile!

Also will try to add a FEED/RSS to THIS GROUP on the Paper Moon Page on Squidoo!

Thrilled tuh find all of youZe here...
have admired Art Naphro's pics for a good long while!

Any more info/ideas/suggestions/corrections/images/texts/vids ARE MOST APPRECIATED!

T
H
A
N
K

Y
O
U

besos,

~confetta

"OK, this is about I know about these portraits. Not much, admittedly...

The so-called paper moon portraits were known during the time of their popularity as "Man in the Moon" portraits. It was of course an American fad and, judging from the style of dress of the subjects, seems to have begun in the late 19th century. I have seen a couple of tintypes that suggest that these portraits may date as far back as the 1860s or 70s, but it seems they didn't boom in popularity until around 1900. Again, judging from the style of clothes of the subjects posing, I would say the popularity of these portraits reached a peak in the 1910s and 20s.

Besides being popular in America, and by extension Canada, this type of portrait spread to the Philippines (which was an American colony from 1898 until 1946) and, in a much smaller way, to Europe. I have seen a handful of these portraits that were taken in the UK and Germany, as well as one taken in Russia.

What I find really interesting about them is that they seem to have been a real departure from the formal studio portraits of the late nineteenth century. The portraits were cheap enough so that anybody could afford to have one taken. Besides studios, more informal "Man in the Moon" portrait booths could be found at arcades, carnivals and county fairs. Many of the people posing on the paper moons were obviously having a good time -- smiling and sometimes cavorting for the camera -- something that was almost never done in studio portraits of the day.

I think the popularity of Kodak's cameras eventually killed these paper moon portraits because people could then afford to take their own pictures, but for a few decades these portraits were probably the cheapest way of getting one's picture taken. Photobooth portraits too were surely a contributing factor to the disappearance of the paper moon portrait. Judging once again from the clothing of the subjects posing, I think the paper moon was starting to wane in popularity by the 1940s, and had all but disappeared by the 1950s."

<>>>

THANK YOU ART.... for adding a link to the Squidoo Paper Moon Page ; )

um,

I don't think I know how to respond to the threads correctly...

Hope this makes sense!

~confetta

RE: affection between men....

YES!
I traveled throughout S.E. Asia back in...1991 - for about a year?

I found it so lovely and charming to see men be publicly affectionate, loving and sweet to each other. It is something - born in 1964 in repressed homophobic Amerikka- I had not seen much of.

I agree that physical affection between 2 men or between two women does not always = "gay" and I think that these thing vary from cultures and time periods.

Another Squidoo page I made might be interesting to some of you is called:
The Pansy Craze: www.squidoo.com/Pansy

Any thoughts on this?

Would love some input on this but it may be off-topic for this group?

~fettZ