The Button Suit of Ruby Ann Kittner, c.1935

Mrs. Ruby Ann Kittner and her husband Jake lived in Clinton, Iowa during the 1930s and 1940s. It looks as if Ruby was a button collector and seamstress, and poor Mr. Kittner was her display model. What a sweetie she must have been! This suit of clothes was in our personal collection for several years, and I must say, it was probably one of the most memorable and unique folk art pieces I have ever had the privilege to own. It was THE thing people commented on the most. The suit was too small for me to ever try on, but I will tell you, it was extremely heavy. It is very rare to find a folk art object of such quality with photo documentation like this. The story goes that this was first found in a thrift store in Iowa about 10 years ago. It changed hands twice before I acquired it.

Recently, this incredible button suit was exhibited at The John Michael Kohler Arts Center in Sheboygan, WI. I no longer own this, it is now in another private collection.

An AM repost from 12/22/2008.

Weekend Random Images

(Above) Button Suit, made by Ruby Ann Kittner; Clinton, Iowa; with original photograph of Ruby and her husband Jake wearing this suit. c 1930 - 1940; dimensions: H 66". Via here.


(Above) Nightmare Town, by Dashell Hammett; Dell Paperbacks #379, 1950; Illustration by Robert Stanley; Via here.


(Above) Philippe Jusforgues: Untitled, (wild purple face with bible and rosary), 2004-05. , 7 x 5 inches, attached to 14 x 11 inch mat board, signed on the reverse. Via here.

(Above) Veijo Rönkkönen, a former paper mill worker, completed his first sculpture in 1961, and now his yard, and the path leading to it, are filled with over 450 statues, 200 of which are self portraits of the artist in Yoga positions he has mastered so far. The statues have loudspeakers hidden inside them, and the sound effects add to the eeriness of this place. Via here.


(Above) Now that automatic weapons are so easy to acquire, tribesmen in the Southern Omo region of Ethiopia have stepped up what once were far simpler conflicts. Another problem with the proliferation of weapons like these? The decimation of wildlife resources. Via here.