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• Issue #159
• Article

By Vern Acular

After twice being closed down in both 1993 and 2006 by the largest snowfalls in the city's history, once being inundated by the second highest rainfall in the city's history in 2007, and once being blockaded by the police over a bomb scare in 2003, the AIPAD show could say that it had been through it all, but could it really?

Well, 2009 provided the astounding answer: it could get worse, a lot worse. How about a plague of hungry locusts? After Senator John McCain had ridiculed his fellow Republican from Utah, Senator Bob Bennett, over Bennett's earmark for research funding on the Mormon locusts and their control, the earmark was removed from the Stimulus Bill. Unfettered, the insects have gone wild and have now invaded as far east as New York City. Drawn by tasty photographs, the swarm covered the Armory location at the AIPAD's Photography New York Show.

"It was horrible, just horrible." cried Santa Monica dealer Peter Fetterman. "They ate up all my Cartier-Bressons, leaving only the signatures."

Petaluma dealer Barry Singer said, "I just told them all that if they eat it, they buy it!"

The flying insects seemed particularly drawn to the fine salt prints at Hans P. Kraus, Jr.'s and Galerie Daniel Blau's booths.

Apparently the only photographs untouched were the large color photographs because they were on a plastic base and were not particularly taste-worthy.

The swarm next settled on a nearby Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant, where they were promptly exterminated by the guard rats.