While browsing the New York City Outsider Art Fair on January 20, 2018, I came across a dealer that was selling a large framed triptych of blotchy inked designs that looked similar to Rorschach inkblot tests. I moved in closer to inspect the information tag and experienced sticker shock at the price. $950.00! The dealer, sensing my interest in the framed collection, approached me and asked, “Do you know what those are?” I didn’t, and he began to tell me all about “The Ghost of My Friends.”
Rather than buying the framed signatures at the art fair, I decided to start hunting these books down on my own. Much to my surprise, I’ve been able to cheaply acquire a handful of copies, filled with “ghost” signatures from the early 1900s. I was also able to acquire a copy of a very similar knock-off type book called, “Your Hidden Skeleton.”
If you’re in a cluttered used book store, a dusty antique shop, or the musty basement of an estate sale, keep your eyes peeled. “The Ghosts Of My Friends” could be lurking anywhere.
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