Mossgreen
Antique & Collectable Cameras - 235 lots
Antique & Collectable Cameras
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Auction House:
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Reference:#MG014
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Description:The passing of Willie Feinberg (1935-2013), left a considerable gap in the tapestry of life in the Southern Highlands. A frequent visitor to Bowral’s many cafes, Willie was a friend to many and was known as the ‘can do man’, by those who enjoyed the benefits of his many skills. The staff at the post office also got used to seeing him almost every day as his cameras arrived from all corners of the globe.
Born in the South Bronx, New York, Willie had a ‘character-building’ childhood; the only white kid in an almost all black school in the bleak pre-World War II years of industrial America. Growing up in that part of New York at that time was not much fun for a Jewish boy who, faced with frequent anti-semitic jibes, began to understand why many Jews were willing to give up their religious beliefs and their attachment to thousands of years of tradition and culture. To quote Willie, “I guess I just wanted to get away from suffering and believing in an unseen salvation. I think that’s me!”
Willie’s parent’s had both been born in the South Bronx of what one might describe as ‘united nation’s origins’ combining Dutch, Russian, Finnish and Latvian heritage with their Jewish faith. The ever-present animosity towards Jews pushed him to question everything about life and took him on an odyssey around the world. Many countries, many faiths, many life experiences and many laughs later, fortuitously, fate delivered him to Australia.
After an apprenticeship as a jeweller with Tiffany’s in New York, Willie’s working life took him through many frontiers; Israel, the US Army, Korea, the Israeli Army and the Six Day War, and then on to working in other countries for the UN and for the Australian Government. During these decades, Willie helped to start small industries in many underprivileged communities around the world, deploying his prodigious design and construction skills and often using recycled and re-purposed materials. He was often in remote jungles or in mountain-top villages only having equipment available to him that he had been able to carry on his back.
His travels eventually found him in Papua New Guinea and, subsequently, here in Australia, where one of his first social outings was a party. In true Aussie tradition, he was asked to ‘bring a plate’, so he did, wondering, at the same time, if there was a crockery shortage in Australia. Imagine the hilarity when Willie turned up with his empty plate!
Willie’s interest in miniature and sub-miniature cameras – so eloquently illustrated in this catalogue – grew out of a practical consideration: if you can only use what you can carry, you better bring good quality, well designed, light-weight equipment. And that extended to cameras. Willie was fascinated by these “little miracles” of design and function and, in later life, was able to indulge this interest by acquiring, studying and talking about the way photography and miniaturization had come together so exquisitely. He really loved the Minox story, was excited by the complexities of the Tessina and was endlessly amused by the many variations of Hit cameras, novelty cameras and dead-end stupid designs, that gave him just as much pleasure as the more elegant and sophisticated Leicas and Compasses.
Willie and his soul-mate Caroline, scoured the world – via the internet and on foot – looking for additions to this collection, which graced their home and dominated any visit: a glass of wine and an introduction to the joys of camera collecting were a right of passage for all of us who had the pleasure and privilege to be invited.
Now many new collectors have the opportunity to continue Willie’s love affair with cameras and all they represent. We hope you enjoy this catalogue and if you’re not already a camera collector, as Willie sould say, “What are you waiting for?”
Charles Leski, with thanks to Nick Padol -
Sale(s):13 Apr 2014 ~ 2pm
926 - 930 High Street
Armadale, VIC 3143 Australia -
Viewing:11 Apr 2014 ~ 10am - 5pm
926 - 930 High Street
Armadale, VIC 3143
Australia
12 Apr 2014 ~ 10am - 5pm
926 - 930 High Street
Armadale, VIC 3143
Australia
13 Apr 2014 ~ 10am - 1.30pm
926 - 930 High Street
Armadale, VIC 3143
Australia
Prices realised in this sale include buyers premium of 24.200%.
