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Any customer of McManus & Morgan will agree that there is an overwhelming amount of interesting materials to discover in such a small shop that it might take days to uncover it all. With this blog post I will attempt to reap a few of this historic shop's intriguing features from it's surface. Trust me there is much more to explore than this blog can hold.
A: The Paper Selection
When approaching the counter you will see unique paper from many different countries hanging on the near-by wall, but that paper isn't even the beginning of the stock in back or the paper that can be ordered from the store's vendors. I think I over-heard the shop keeper say once that he could literally offer thousands of different papers from around 25 different countries. The owner's name is Gary and he specializes in helping each artist find the perfect paper for the specifications of their projects. Describe to him what you want to accomplish and he will find the right paper for all of your creative needs. He can also show you countless examples of what other designers and artists have done with each paper. There is no other paper source like this in all of Los Angeles.
B: The Vintage Table and Shelves (All pictures from here on taken by Leo Jimenez)
I am impressed by this shop's willingness to sell paper in as many forms as possible including books. There are a lot of more current books to be found within these walls, but the ever fluctuating and expanding vintage section is one of those gems that sticks out among the rest. Each visit is a grab bag. I have found everything from 1950's sci-fi novels to British stamp books from the 20's. Books and documents from the 1800's have also surfaced here. In talking with Gary I found out that many set dressers and prop masters from the film industry shop for books here. Some books have even graced the set of Mad Men. For those who love things like book scouting this is a prime spot to do so, and a portion of the proceeds go to a local redistribution collective of students and artists called the Los Angeles InnerChange Book Collective. Take a look- there's always a mysterious book to be found.
C: Art Trading Cards Trade Post and the Art Cards Sales Rack
Local artists have started trading their miniature works at the trading card post pictured above. All artists are invited to trade cards as long as they leave a 2.5" x 3.5" original art piece to replace the one they took. This is a great underground movement in the art world and one of the few trading posts in the area.
On the shelf next to the trading post are supplies to make and collect your own ATCs as-well as Art Cards for sale by local artists. Of course I trade at this post and I sell my ACEOs on this shelf. The more artists active in this movement the better. Join us!
D:Packaged Ephemera
Pictured above is the ephemera section of the store. Members of the LAIC Book Collective mentioned earlier recycle books that are falling apart by cutting the interesting images out of the pages. These images are harvested to provide scrapbook, collage, and decoupage artists with materials for their work. Each package features themed illustrations, and they are reasonably priced. This section has quickly become one of the more popular sections of the store. Where else can you get stuff like this? Seriously.
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