Friday, November 08, 2013

Ghost signs

I'm happy to finally have a name for these faded advertisements that I like to photograph. I find them painted on falling-down buildings along rural roads and in the old parts of sleepy Southern towns.


Wikipedia, my source for everything that I didn't know had a name, says they were most common before the Great Depression and that the artists who painted them were known as "wall dogs."

In some places, there's an effort to preserve or restore them. Oftentimes, they just fade away like so much history.

I'm not even sure, myself, where I took these couple photos, but for the last one. On the way to somewhere else is all I remember.

This one is a favorite, simply because I get to see it most often. It's on the way to Tallahassee and, despite many tries, I've yet to get a photo that I like.

Apparently, other people like to photograph these old signs, too. And if you're so inclined and have some favorites, you might consider adding them to the Ghost Sign Project so other people can find them, too.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is so cool, Laura. I've seen these faded art projects and never thought to photograph them, or that they had a name. Now I'll keep my eyes open for these beautiful Ghost Signs.

KGMom said...

We have quite a few of such signs in this area--painted on the side of barns, and almost always advertising tobacco.
Cool to know what they are called.

RG said...

Big Mistake
Many Make
Rely of Horn
Instead of Brake
BURMA-SHAVE


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