Erik Kessels adds to his 'In Almost Every Picture' photography book series

Erik Kessels has just added an 11th book to his cult series, 'In Almost Every Picture', this time focusing on one man's obsession with photographing his wife, fully-dressed, in bodies of water. The founding partner and creative director of leading communications agency KesselsKramer collects vernacular photography, scouring flea markets and the internet for pictures, that as a collection, contain a narrative that goes beyond their significance as individual photographs. Over the years he has curated these finds into a series of beautifully designed books, each with an individual charm, telling a story that ranges from the comically incidental to the deeply poignant. It's no surprise that the editions have become highly sought after collector's items. Here, we take a look through the full collection of books.

The 11th book will be available to purchase from London's KK Outlet (opens in new tab) from the 18 October. At 7pm that day, Erik Kessels will be talking about the latest edition, as well as the stories behind some of the most popular books in the series.

In Almost Every Picture: #11, October 2012

Edited and designed by Erik Kessels, photographs by Fred Clark

The latest installment of this long-running photography series comprises the photographs of a man named Fred Clark, who repeatedly snaps his wife in any body of water close to hand, be it a swimming pool or the ocean. An obsession spanning decades, each image shows an immaculately dressed Valerie, who occasionally shifts her style from the chic to the outrageous. At times, she is almost completely under water and at others, she is standing indoors, sipping champagne. Showers and baths are a favourite source of inspiration for this unusual erotic play, but even Valerie in the rain is enough to prompt another photograph in the series.

In Almost Every Picture: #10, July 2011

Collected by Michel Campeau, edited by Erik Kessels

Piglets make the unlikely stars of book 10, the result of a strange detective story by photographer Michel Campeau. While clearing out his mother’s house, he chanced upon a curious image of a piglet being bottle-fed in a restaurant. Later he stumbled across another by accident, eventually discovering a whole series of shots of piglets on people’s laps, standing on tables, posed as if eating with a knife and fork, and even playing with people’s food, in what turned out to be Montreal restaurant Au Lutin Qui Bouffe. Now printed on an apt pink paper stock, the book documents an obsession: both Campeau’s own and that of the original piglet snapper. Jean-Paul Cuerrier began the series in 1938, amassing thousands of photographs over a 35-year period. At the end of the book, one question remains: what became of these cute little animals? Perhaps it’s best not to know…

In Almost Every Picture: #9, December 2010

Collected & edited by Eric Kessels

Capturing a very black dog on camera can be troublesome, especially with an old Polaroid camera that is not quite up to the job. These hapless attempts by one unidentified family to photograph their dark-smudge-of-a-pet make for strangely compelling viewing. The dog acquires an air of mystery and importance because of his absence. And surrounding him are domestic details from a bygone era. Just as you are wondering whether you will ever see the features of the canine in question, suddenly there he is, in his not-so-remarkable splendour. Spanning many years, it’s an epic tail that proves the old adage: persevere and you’ll get there in the end.

In Almost Every Picture, December 2009

Collected & edited by Eric Kessels

Taken from Japanese photographer Hironori Akutagawa’s popular blog, the series pays tribute to Akutagawa’s pet rabbit, ‘Oolong’ who, during his life, demonstrated a talent for balancing inanimate objects – ranging from a scull to a pancake – on his unusually flat head. The series ends in tragedy, with Oolong buried beneath a carrot tombstone. Akutagawa’s blog increased in popularity over its four year stint, with head-balancing nods to important world events, including a ‘Happy New Millennium’ badge on 1 January 2000.

From left: October 24, 1999 and January 16, 2002

From left: October 24, 2001 and December 1, 2001

From left: September 23, 2003 and September 23, 2003

In Almost Every Picture: #7, December 2008

Collected & edited by Eric Kessels

Ria van Dijk compiled a photographic record of her sharp shooting achievements for over 70 years. Despite the vague menace of a woman pointing a riffle at the camera, the shots – featuring extraneous bystanders and fairground paraphernalia – offers an account of van Dijk’s past. Family members, friends and fans are all present in the background of the pictures, which were taken in her hometown of Tilburg, in the Netherlands

Tilburg, 1938

Brussels, July 25th, 1954

Oisterwijk, July 13th, 1975

Den Bosch, September 18th, 1964

Oosterhout, August 22nd, 1978

Tilburg, July 21st, 1987

Tilburg, 1997

In Almost Every Picture: #6, December 2007

Collected & edited by Eric Kessels

This may seem like the chronicle of a series of unfortunate haircuts, but it is in fact a selection of one woman’s passport photos, taken over the course of 60 years. Shot between 1926 and 1978, the subject lived through the Second World War and the moon landings – but her blanket expression; the increasing lines on her face, and her consistently well-dressed shoulders reveal very little except the passing of time and its effects on one woman’s appearance.

1926

1936

1939

1952

1949

1948

1955

1966

1977

In Almost Every Picture: #5, December 2006

Collected & edited by Eric Kessels

These pictures were given to Kessel by his German friend and collaborator Marion Blomeyer. The beloved Dalmatian forms the link in each photograph, but nothing else other than its German nationality is known. Holiday snaps, arty shots and end-of-roll fillers abound, as does the elderly owners’ devotion to their dog, a devotion that imbues the animal with a human character as the series progresses.

In Almost Every Picture: #4, December 2005

Collected & edited by Eric Kessels

Kessels rescued this collection of photographs from a Brussels fleamarket. Taken on The Ramblas in Barcelona by professional photographers who snapped people on the streets, the twins always appear arm-in-arm in the same position. From the dates of the photographs, Kessels concludes that one of the twins died by the end of the Second World War. In the subsequent images it appears as if a space has been left open for her by the remaining twin.

Madrid, October 17th, 1940

Barcelona, January 18th, 1940

Barcelona, October 4th, 1940

Barcelona, February 5th, 1941

Barcelona, April 29th, 1941

Barcelona, June 8th, 1940

Barcelona, September 11th, 1940

Gibraltar, June 6th, 1946

In Almost Every Picture: #3, December 2004

Collected & edited by Eric Kessels

This series of woodland beasts are enigmatic and magnetic in equal measures. Featuring a selection of animals – primarily deer – captured by a motion sensing camera rigged in the woods at night by hunters wishing to monitor the population, the photographs tell no story. Wild-eyed and inanimate, the deer are present whether or not the camera goes off, and provide a snapshot of an unknown environment. Kessels came across after an association of hunters in America posted the images of the deer on the Internet.

In Almost Every Picture: #2, December 2003

Collected & edited by Eric Kessels

The taxi driver AJ Paetzhold took a series of images of one of his passengers in his car, in various locations around Europe, except the final one, which was taken of him by the lady from the front seat. The pictures came into Kessels' possession via the Dutch photographer Andrea Stultiens, a neighbour of the Paetzholds in the Dutch city of Nijmegen. When Paetzhold’s wife passed away, Andrea helped clear out the house and was given a collection of images, which were subsequently given to Kessels. On closer inspection Kessels discovered the lady in the photographs was disabled, hence unable to get out of the taxi on her travels.

10344 kms

07449 kms

02466 kms

05773 kms

01225 kms

00361 kms

05513 kms

08774 kms

18003 kms

In Almost Every Picture: #1, June 2002

Collected & edited by Eric Kessels

This series of found pictures shows a Spanish lady photographed over the course of many years by her husband. When the series was shown as a part of an exhibition in Barcelona, the images appeared on the news and in Spanish newspapers. A woman who had previously worked with the lady in the photographs at Telefónica came forward and revealed that she was called Josephina Aparicio Inglesias, and that she had no children and had recently passed away.

Nº 20, August 1956, Lloret-de-Mar

Nº 128, July 1959, Camp de Mar

Nº 184, September 1960, Barcelona

Nº 5, June 1956, Tamariu

Nº 122, April 1959, Madrid

Nº 335, June 1963, Puigcerda

Nº 521, September 1967, P. de Sau

Nº 13, July 1956, Cala Grifen

Nº 469 ,July 1966, Monells

Nº 555, December 1969, Alcala Henares