A Visual Tribute to Barber Shops

Marrella Hairstylists, NYC, November 1977, Copyright Betsy van Die

As a fine artist and photographer, I’ve always been obsessed with barber shops – visually. I don’t particularly like going to beauty salons to get my hair cut. I think barber shops are far more interesting and less snooty. After graduating early from high school, I would go on outings with my mom (who is also an artist) on Lincoln Avenue in Chicago, where I photographed interesting storefronts. Even back then I was drawn to barber shops. My admiration of a few select photographers informed my early photographic work – especially those who worked for the Farm Security Administration, such as Walker Evans and Russell Lee, as well as the great photographer Berenice Abbott. All of them took wonderful photos of barber shops.

Tri-Boro Barber School by Berenice Abbott, 1935

Back when I was an art student at RISD, I photographed quite a few barber shops in Providence and NYC. Unfortunately, I didn’t note where the NYC barber shops were located, however, I do remember one because of the circumstances. The below barber (on Lafayette Street) came outside when he saw me photographing the exterior. He volunteered to pose, which seemed nice enough. Nobody else was there and after he made a few suggestive comments and asked inappropriate questions, I high tailed it out of there rather quickly.

NYC Barber on Lafayette, November 1977, Copyright Betsy van Die

Barber Shop Window, NYC, November 1977, Copyright Betsy van Die

Barber Shop, Downtown Providence, 1977, Copyright Betsy van Die

Joe’s Barber Shop, Downtown Providence, 1977, Copyright Betsy van Die

Many barber shops are still decorated with really cool ephemera and antiques that add to the appeal of getting your hair cut. An example is the JMC Barber Shop, which I stumbled upon last August in Elmhurst, Ill. I have never seen such a visual explosion covering every imaginable wall space – you couldn’t possibly get bored when you get your hair cut here!

JMC Barber Shop, Elmhurst, Illinois, August 2019, Copyright Betsy van Die

While I prefer my vintage late 1970s black and white shots, I have taken color photos of barber shops when I traveled for business and leisure. The below color photos were taken more recently in St. Maarten, NYC, San Francisco, and Baltimore. The iconic barber shop poles and other visual elements still entrance me after all these years. The Baltimore photo is a ladies beauty salon – I couldn’t resist the unusual visual composition.

Chinatown Barber Shop, September 2018, Copyright Betsy van Die

Beauty Salon, Baltimore, September 2014, Copyright Betsy van Die

Museums and Barber Shop-Related Collections

If you love barber shops, you can visit several museums devoted to the art of barbering. I was impressed with the wonderful barbering ephemera displayed at the NYC Barber Shop Museum when I visited in 2018. The National Barber Museum and Hall of Fame in Canal Winchester, Ohio is open by appointment only, but they have interesting galleries online.

NYC Barber Shop Museum, September 2018, Copyright Betsy van Die

NYC Barber Shop Museum, September 2018, Copyright Betsy van Die

Many people specialize in collecting just one aspect of barbering – like Tuscaloosa barber Rev. Thomas Linton who has an awesome collection of shaving mugs. Linton was an instrumental figure in the Civil Rights Movement in Tuscaloosa. In fact, shaving mugs are so plentiful, you could build a nice collection with one overriding theme, like these beautiful BPOE Elk mugs.

Rev. Thomas Linton and Shaving Cup Collection, April 2010, Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress

10 Intriguing Facts About Barber Shops

1. As long as 6,000 years ago, Egyptian nobility used sharpened flint and oyster shells to cut hair.
2. In ancient cultures such as Egypt, priests specializing in warding off evil spirits trimmed, styled, and shaved the hair which they believed acted as a channel for demons to enter the body.
3. In the Middle Ages, barber-surgeons cut hair, dressed wounds, and performed surgical operations.
4. In 1450, a law was enacted that united the barber’s company and surgeon’s guild. The purpose was to ensure that no one practice barbering during surgery and no barber practice any type of surgery except pulling teeth.
5. After the Civil War, barber shops were re-established as accepted institutions on main streets throughout America. In many small towns and some large cities, barber shops offered a place for men to socialize.
6. The visual appearance of the barber pole is linked to bloodletting performed by barber-surgeons. Red represents blood and white represents the bandages used to stem the bleeding. It is theorized that blue is symbolic of the veins cut during bloodletting, however, another interpretation suggests blue was added to poles in America as a show of patriotism and nod to the flag.
7. In 1880, the average barber shop measured about 10 by 12 feet and cost just $20 to equip. Haircuts were five or ten cents and shaves were three cents.
8. In 1893, A.B. Moler opened the first Barber School in Chicago and also published barbering textbooks.
9. The most famous barbershop on television has to be Floyd’s from the Andy Griffith Show (1960-1968). Howard McNear played Floyd Lawson until 1967 and passed away in 1969 due to complications from a debilitating stroke he suffered six years earlier.
10. By 1985, more than 50% of barbering students were female.

Andy Griffith Show – Floyd’s Barber Shop

Photo sources: ebay, Library of Congress, Pinterest