Founded by Mary Ann Lynch in 1977, this not-for-profit venture was early
among independent small presses publishing photography.
The editorial intent was twofold: to create an outlet where well-known as well as upcoming photographers could exist side by side; and to help build the network of photographers worldwide. Lynch titled her editorial "Notes on the Network." All styles of photography were welcome, including those that pushed the boundaries of the medium. Each issue, which sold for $3, also featured other works photographic in content-- from poetry, prose, and essays to interviews, criticism, reviews and more. Hence, the title, Combinations. Master photographers Ruth Bernhard, Walter Chappell, Jack Delano and Clarence John Laughlin all agreed to contribute and some became cover features. Geoffrey Aronson, Floris Neususs, Ted Orland, Ron Rosenstock, Linda Troeller, Mark Weston and many others sent in work for consideration and were selected .
Of the 1000 copies printed, some circulated to galleries and subscribers from
throughout the United States & several other countries, with a
strong following in Germany; some went to contributors and some were donated to schools or exchanged with other small press publishers. The stories connected with editing and publishing the Journal are many, but
one of the more unusual was the way Peeter Tooming, a renowned Estonian
photographer, got his work to Lynch -- by smuggling it in a carved-out
cavity inside a text book about photography. Tooming's correspondence, work and an article appeared in Combinations Journal #
Each small press publication was unique, bearing the distinctive mark, flair and sensibility of its publisher/editor. The small
press movement remains an important part of the history of contemporary independent/outsider photography publishing.
above, Volume 1 Number 4 – 1979 Cover photograph: Jack Delano. An interview
with Jack Delano by Ed Miller; Photographic Gallery featuring Diane
Farris, Fred Picker, Mark Melnicove and Franco Salmoiraghi; article by
Ed Miller on a student workshop in Puerto Rico; Single Images with Toyo
Biddle, Lucy Ash, Steven Schwartzman, Margaret McCarthy, Sandra Y.
Oguro, Katherine Kreisher, Kenneth A. Deicher; poetry by Layle Silbert,
Frank Judge, and John Hammond and more . . .
Combinations Press, then & now. . .
After six issues of the journal and a deluge of other new small press/indy publications starting up, Lynch put Combinations the Journal on hiatus while she enrolled in New York University's Graduate Film program. After three arduous years she received her MFA in filmmaking, her 3rd and last degree. With the successful completion of her thesis film, Not Made of Glass, an awardwinning 55-minute feature documentary on the poet Lyn Lifshin, Lynch awakened Combinations Press in 1989 to publish a companion volume to the film (see below). The journal of making the film that Lynch contributed to the anthology gives an insider's view of life at the old NYU on East 8th Street in the East Village, where the equipment, classrooms, and nighttime street life were just plain down and dirty:a mean streets-with-flair vibe.
The
Press may soon begin publishing again. Lynch is committed to publishing in print for the long run although it may also introduce something in cyberspace. The jury's still out on both counts. So far, the areas in which Combinations Press has published include photography, poetry, filmmaking and Americana.
• Combinations Press Publications •
Combinations, a Journal of Photography
Issues 1-6 $20 per issue includes s/h. Collectible
Chapbook
Mark/Making by Jack Sal. His first book. Out of print. $20 incl s/hCollectible
Poetry/Film
Lyn Lifshin: Not Made of Glass, Poems 1968-1989
An anthology of Lyn Lifshin poetry, edited by Mary Ann Lynch,
introduction by Laura Chester, afterword by Tony Moffeit, film journal
by Mary Ann Lynch. Has all the poems (and more) included in the
award-winning 55-minute film (of the same title, 1987, Karista Films)
produced & directed by Mary Ann Lynch. Out of print, limited availability $14.95. $18 including s/hCollectible
Americana / Non-fiction/ Memoir/ NYS & NJ Local history /Military History
Jim Smith's American Stories, by James A. Smith, Jr. / with Mary Ann Lynch History and stories from Jim Smith, a bona fide member of "the greatest generation," with a knack for telling stories and a memory that covers 90 years -- of growing up as a child in New Jersey, then moving with his family to the Adirondack foothills in NYS, where he fell in love with Rosemary Bruchac, the girl he would marry. When Pearl Harbor was hit, he enlisted as a U.S. Marine, toured the Pacific, and survived all, including Iwo Jima. Then it was home again for marriage and a two-fold career: as a Western musician , and holding down a fulltime job at the International Paper Company in Corinth, NY.
This American memoir is filled with surprises, unforgettable stories of our collective past, and the quick humor and charm of a man who served his country well and has remained loyal to his faith, family, and community, both locally and within the world of Western music. Jim Smith's life is an ongoing labor of love and that's exactly what it was for me, his niece, to work with him to get this volume in shape and out to readers. It's easy to read and most agree it is truly hard to put down, whether you have had military experience or not.
But for anyone who is, or who knew, a veteran of WWII, this book is certain to offer something new as well as stories that will touch your heart and awaken your own memories. And maybe get you started on writing your own life stories -- as everyone should do.
2003, 520 pages, soft laminated cover, many b&w vintage photographs, both historic and personal.
PRICE: $24.95. includes shipping and handling within the United States. GROUP DISCOUNTS are available to educators wanting to use the book in the classroom; seniors; veterans; military organizations; or military book clubs; and ???? --- ask us if you have an interested group. Minimum quantity for discounted price is 8 books, PLEASE NOTE: Our publications are not available in bookstores because so many of them, both chains and independents, have taken books on consignment and never paid or returned unsold copies.
ORDERS: mlynch3424@aol.com / PayPal, money order or check. Contact us and we'll bill you with information on payment.
All photographs and text are copyright 2012 Mary Ann Lynch unless otherwise noted. No materials can be copied, reproduced, used, or altered in any manner or by any form of reproduction without written permission from Mary Ann Lynch. Email: mlynch3424@aol.com
