HISTORY IN 3-D
Tale of The ‘Donkey Man’ Pops Out of Book Arts Class’ Work
With Help of 3-D Glasses
Boise State professor Tom Trusky is inviting the public to learn a little bit more about Pacific Northwest history and enjoy the works created by his book arts class — all in 3-D.
Visitors to Trusky’s Web site will be able to see the class’ project with the help of 3-D glasses, which can be obtained by calling ext. 6-4210 or by e-mailing Trusky. The students were asked to create a book that dealt with the story of the “Donkey Man,” J. Fred Anderson, a photographer who worked in northern Idaho and eastern Washington at the turn of the 20th century.
Anderson
found a suffering, abandoned donkey in Lewiston and nursed it back to health,
later enlisting the donkey to carry his chemicals and other photography equipment.
Anderson would travel from town to town, often taking photos of children riding
the donkey and wearing costumes, as well as portraits of American Indians
in the region. He married a young woman that his family later referred to
as “The Child Bride,” according to Anderson’s son, Howard. The Child Bride
ran off, and Anderson eventually married again and fathered Howard Anderson
and a daughter. After being mistreated by his father, 17-year-old Howard ran
away from his parents and Idaho, never to return.
The book arts class was tasked with using some part of the story in a creative way. Some of the creations deal with Anderson’s camera, or are told from the point of view of The Child Bride.
3-D enthusiasts have another opportunity to use their special glasses by visiting the Idaho Center for the Book’s Web site at http://www.lili.org/icb/. Trusky worked with Kathy Robinson at Boise State Printing and Graphics Services to turn his photos into 3-D creations.
“I only regret that the glasses are red and blue instead of blue and orange,” he said.