We all have an idea, generally, why we collect.
FROM THE EDITOR
Bill Youngerman started collecting pennies and nickels as a boy. Today, he has a remarkable collection of Florida National Bank Notes (see Collector of Note). Cheech Marin began collecting Chicano art when he connected with artists of the Mexican-American civil rights movement. Now the actor/comedian is opening an art museum in California (see Persona).
Graham Nash, who rose to fame as a founding member of the Hollies and Crosby, Stills & Nash, has been a rock fan since his boyhood in post-war England. When American rock acts visited town, Nash was there. After his own success, Nash began acquiring guitars played and owned by his rock ’n’ roll heroes – Duane Allman, Bo Diddley, Charlie Gracie, Johnny Cash, Sam Cooke (see Graham Nash Lights the Fire). “I just don’t collect any guitars,” Nash says. “I’ve always collected only what touches me.”
And here’s what makes collecting even better.
Researchers are finding that collecting – whether it’s done for historical, nostalgic or cultural reasons – is actually good for us. As Stacey Colino explains in The Balm of Nostalgia, nostalgic activities can connect our past and present selves, conferring a variety of emotional, psychological and social benefits.
Now that’s an idea we like.
DROP ME A line at HectorC@HA.com to share your stories. I remain interested in your discoveries.
Hector Cantú, Editor & Publisher
This article appears in the Spring/Summer 2019 edition of The Intelligent Collector magazine. Click here to subscribe to the print edition.