Photo zine, Jon Pressick, [email protected]
Unwanted mattresses — we see them abandoned in alleys, at curbsides, or dragged half-heartedly toward dumpsters. We are familiar with these eyesores and their accompanying creepy stains and busted springs, and they always look so bulky and forsaken, so damned unreclaimable. We’re familiar with them but what do we see when we look at them? In this zine the author sees beyond garbage and imagines additional context.
Contained within “The Morning After” are 15 images of junked beds with small write-ups from the perspective of the mattress underneath each one. The mattresses explain why they were thrown away (moving, upgrading, marital breakup, etc.) and each mentions a few things it has witnessed. There’s stories of sex, of course, but they’ve also borne witness to jumping kids, insomnia, tears and death.
Think of all the time you spend on your mattress. Ugly as they look once thrown behind an apartment block, these things can represent. It’s a simple zine. Sometimes funny, a few times poignant, but generally charming. That’s right, I was charmed by a zine about dirty mattresses. (Danielle Patrick)