Cage, John. (1912–1992). Signed Photograph collecting Mushrooms. Candid glossy photograph of the American composer and accomplished mycologist in the wild, with a basket in his left hand, apparently collecting mushrooms. Inscribed in ball-point pen to right margin, "For Al Abrams with best wishes John Cage." Hand stamps with contact information for Cage to verso. 10 x 8 inches inches (25.5 x 20.5 cm). Small damage near head (mark of a paper clip, etc.), else fine
Cage once said that if he were to live his life over again, he would be a botanist rather than an artist. He was in fact an amateur mycologist of some distinction, helping to found the New York Mycological Society, winning an Italian TV quiz on mushrooms in the 1950s, and co-writing (with Lois Long and Alexander Smith) "The Mushroom Book." Lois Long, a textile designer, assisted Cage in teaching a course in Mushroom Identification at the New School for Social Research in 1959–60. Together, the two revived the defunct New York Mycological Society and co-authored Mushroom Book and Mud Book.
Cage, John. (1912–1992). Signed Photograph collecting Mushrooms. Candid glossy photograph of the American composer and accomplished mycologist in the wild, with a basket in his left hand, apparently collecting mushrooms. Inscribed in ball-point pen to right margin, "For Al Abrams with best wishes John Cage." Hand stamps with contact information for Cage to verso. 10 x 8 inches inches (25.5 x 20.5 cm). Small damage near head (mark of a paper clip, etc.), else fine
Cage once said that if he were to live his life over again, he would be a botanist rather than an artist. He was in fact an amateur mycologist of some distinction, helping to found the New York Mycological Society, winning an Italian TV quiz on mushrooms in the 1950s, and co-writing (with Lois Long and Alexander Smith) "The Mushroom Book." Lois Long, a textile designer, assisted Cage in teaching a course in Mushroom Identification at the New School for Social Research in 1959–60. Together, the two revived the defunct New York Mycological Society and co-authored Mushroom Book and Mud Book.