FOUND Magazine Online

For this week I chose one of my favorite websites, www.foundmagazine.com. Originally a printed magazine, Found collects “found” things that people submit from all over the world. Usually notes or cards written on paper, photographs and even a frog’s skin are a part of the always-growing collection: “We collect found stuff: love letters, birthday cards, kids' homework, to-do lists, ticket stubs, poetry on napkins, doodles-- anything that gives a glimpse into someone else's life. Anything goes.” These objects are digitized, and made available to the viewer online, as well as in the printed magazines. The found items are searchable by title, and there’s a new “find of the day” posted every day online.

I believe that they digitize everything that people send them, not just the interesting or funny finds, as indicated by this object from March 18, 2006:

The metadata for each image is really up to the person who finds the object and sends it in. The finder is encouraged to include any background information for their find (the situation they were in when they found it, what kind of place it was found in, etc.) as well as their name and city where it was found, but nothing is required. The website also lists the date each item was posted. The “about us” section of the website describes the collection and how it began: “We decided to make a bunch of projects so that everyone can check out all the strange, hilarious and heartbreaking things people have picked up and passed our way. As a way for everyone to join forces and share their finds with everyone else, we decided to start a magazine called FOUND, a showcase for all the strange, hilarious and heartbreaking things people've picked up. We spent a year spreading word about the project and collecting great finds, then with scissors and tape we slapped together the first issue of FOUND in June of 2001. Each year since, with help from our friends and finders all around the world, we've put out a new issue of the magazine.”

The objects are not very large, usually measuring from 400-500 x 300 pixels. Some objects can be magnified, between 900 x 600 pixels, much closer to the original. Unfortunately this is not an option for many of the images. According to the website, the images are scanned as .jpg at 300dpi at 100 percent.

The intended audience is probably just about everyone with a slightly offbeat sense of humor, and a trace of voyeurism. The comments enabled for the posts show that viewers come from all around the world, and from many walks of life.