Inspired by 500 Cameras: Creating Cameras Inspired by the Hardy Boys

Paul Baker is an artist who works in a variety of media, including wood and found materials. For his new project, he has been creating cameras inspired by characters from the Hardy Boys. In this interview, Baker shares the inspiration and process behind this project.

How did you get the inspiration for this project?

I had been making 19th-century camera sculptures, when I came across Todd Gustavson’s 500 Cameras book, and was really struck by the more modern cameras he’d selected. At the time, I was reading the Hardy Boys series aloud to my neighbor’s boys, aged 7 and 8. The idea for the series hit me mid-chapter; the Tower Treasure Mystery, I think.

Can you talk us through your general process of creating these cameras based on characters from the Hardy Boys?

Cameras come in an infinite variety, just like people. Reading Gustavson’s book I realized there were about 20 basic categories. I sketched these as a handy reference. The fun starts in matching the form to the person.

A brief version would be:

1. Choose your character. In this example here, I selected Callie Shaw, age 18, who is dating Frank Hardy;
2. Glean information about her from the books;
3. Add inferences you make to develop the character;
4. Choose a form for a camera that will match, or really, express Callie;
5. Find picture references;
6. And take the camera build through its various stages.

That could all take a few days or a few weeks. Naturally, I work on a few simultaneously.

Where do you find all the different materials for this series?

I have a huge collection of small bits and pieces amassed over the years. Plus, I’ll search for a specific item — such as a folding viewfinder — from inexpensive cameras on eBay. Most of the rest like wood, paint, etc, comes from my favorite hardware store.

Can you share the process of creating a camera for a couple of the characters?

Sure; I’ll cover three characters — starting with Callie. We’ve seen above what her finished camera/sculpture looks like. She’s described as tall and quiet. I inferred she is perceived as reserved, even aloof: cordial enough, but cool, always in control. James Bond and his famous Aston Martin seemed a good inspiration. Once I found some distinctive details in the car, the camera almost designed itself. A watercolor sketch captured my ideas, and then I began building.

I added brown accents to suggest worn leather seats in a vintage MG.

Sometimes a particular material inspires the camera. Here, I decided to cover the body with an old-fashioned kitchen oilcloth, since Aunt Gertrude enjoys cooking. The flash unit is from a measuring spoon.

Or in this case, the setting was crucial. For Sam Radley, Fenton Hardy’s operative, my back story is he was undercover in Cairo in 1958. So his camera incorporated a dark green lens suggestive of Ray-Bans, with the body (curved to slip into a sports jacket breast pocket) in unobtrusive sand. Simple, flush controls. It all came together.

Where can one go to learn more?

The Hardy Boys series is still in progress, and so, not yet available to see. But my site has samples that are similar, including this group just completed:

https://www.c-clampstudios.com/art#/connoisseurs-collection

I’d like to thank all visitors for their interest in my work. Please stay tuned here and on my site for photos of the completed, unique “Ten Characters / Ten Cameras” sculpture series.

Paul Baker, Artist

www.C-ClampStudios.com