The Anonymous Project

What The Anonymous Project does

The Anonymous Project is a Paris-based artistic endeavor founded in 2017 by artist and filmmaker Lee Shulman. Its core activity is the curation, preservation, and artistic presentation of a private archive of hundreds of thousands of amateur color slides spanning approximately the last 70 years, sourced primarily through private acquisitions. The collection is organized thematically (family life, road trips, fashion, gatherings) and forms the raw material for all downstream output. The team is small — approximately five people including the founder, a studio manager, and a head of image production — operating from a single Paris studio.

The company's products fall into three categories: (1) fine art works — Duratrans lightboxes, Cibachrome and inkjet prints on Hahnemühle paper, Totem installations with 300W LED backlighting, Memory Blankets (prints on hand-stitched fabric), Memory Walls (prints on bricks), Vitraux compositions, and backlit Duratrans in suitcases; (2) collaborative projects with established photographers, notably Martin Parr ('Déjà View', Textuel, 2021) and Omar Victor Diop ('Being There', Textuel, 2023; ~60 works); and (3) published books with major art publishers including Taschen, Prestel, Textuel, Mini Hoxton Press, JBE Books, Flammarion, and Éditions Bessard, with 10+ titles since 2019.

The business model is a hybrid of one-time fine art sales mediated through exclusive gallery representation in France (Clémentine de la Féronnière) and the USA (Edwynn Houk Gallery), exhibition participation at international photography festivals (Rencontres d'Arles, Fotografiska, Photo London, Paris Photo, Photo Élysée, Kyotographie), book publishing royalties, and direct e-commerce through anonymousprojectstore.com. Customer segments include high-net-worth art collectors, museums and photography institutions, established art book publishers, and corporate/hospitality clients. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is quote-based through gallery partners.

Name

The Anonymous Project

Legal name

The Anonymous Project

Website

https://anonymous-project.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Anonymous Project is a Paris-based artistic endeavor founded in 2017 by Lee Shulman that curates hundreds of thousands of vintage amateur color slides into fine art lightboxes, installations, books, and exhibitions for collectors, museums, and photography institutions worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fine Art Photography

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Libraries and Archives (51921)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Photo Library Organization & Curation (HSAFAGAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Archives, Special Collections & Preservation Operations (Rare Materials, Conservation) (EDAEAGAJ), Access & Distribution for Archives (Restored Masters, DCP Creation, Screening Deliverables) (MPADAMAJ)

Keywords

• Vernacular photography archive
• Fine art photography exhibitions
• Photography book publishing
• Lightbox art installations
• Contemporary art curation

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Operations

Revenue model

1. Fine Art Sales: Sales of prints, lightboxes, and original artworks through galleries and art fairs, including works like Underwater Love (lightbox), The Last Cibachrome, and large-scale installations
2. Book Publishing: Co-publishing art books with established publishers including Taschen, Prestel, Textuel, Mini Hoxton Press, JBE Books, Flammarion, and Éditions Bessard. Multiple titles including Mid-Century Memories, Déjà View, Being There, and Dressed to Impress
3. Exhibition Fees: Solo and group show participations at international photography festivals and institutions, including Rencontres d'Arles, Fotografiska Berlin, Photo London, Paris Photo, and Photo Élysée Lausanne
4. E-commerce Store: Direct sales of prints and merchandise through their online store (anonymousprojectstore.com)

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Anonymous Project collects, preserves, and curates a proprietary archive of hundreds of thousands of amateur color slides from the last 70 years, transforming them into lightbox installations, fine art prints, photography art books, and immersive exhibitions. Founded by artist and filmmaker Lee Shulman in 2017, the project delivers fine art works, published monographs, and large-scale artistic installations to museums, galleries, collectors, and book publishers worldwide.

Product overview

The Anonymous Project is a photography art initiative founded by Lee Shulman that collects and curates amateur color slides from the last 70 years into artistic works, publications, and immersive installations. The portfolio comprises a photography collection archive at its core, supported by published books (Golden Memories, Dressed to Impress, Being There, Déjà View, Mid-Century Memories, The House, Couldn't Care Less, On the Road, Head's Up, When We Were Young), original artworks (lightboxes, prints, totems, memory walls), collaborative projects with artists like Omar Victor Diop and Martin Parr, and gallery-represented exhibitions. The project transforms forgotten domestic photography into hybrid artistic experiences that preserve collective memory.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mid-Century Memories First major book from The Anonymous Project collection, edited by Taschen in 2019, reflecting on how people used film cameras like smartphones today—capturing meals, holidays, loved ones, and celebrations across the mid-century era.
• The House Book edited by Textuel in 2019 with support from Agnes B Foundation and PICTO, providing an immersive look at family life themes from The Anonymous Project collection accompanying the corresponding exhibition.
• When We Were Young Book edited by Mini Hoxton Press in 2020 documenting the UK part of The Anonymous Project collection with images of red brick houses, football, and seaside trips from the British amateur archive.
• Déjà View (Martin Parr & The Anonymous Project) Book edited by Textuel in 2021 creating a visual dialogue between renowned British photographer Martin Parr's iconic images and The Anonymous Project's amateur slides, revealing striking similarities in framing and subjects.
• Head's Up Book edited by Editions Bessard in 2021 questioning the notion of the failed photograph through deliberate close-ups and happy accidents from The Anonymous Project collection.
• On the Road Book edited by Mini Hoxton Press in 2022 capturing vintage cars, family road trips, and endless vistas from mid-century Europe and America drawn from The Anonymous Project collection.
• Being There (Lee Shulman & Omar Victor Diop) Book edited by Textuel Editions in 2023 documenting the artistic collaboration in which Senegalese artist Omar Victor Diop was inserted into anonymous 1950s-60s American slides from The Anonymous Project collection, questioning representations and contemporary society.
• Couldn't Care Less (Thomas Lélu & Lee Shulman) Book co-created with Thomas Lélu, edited by JBE Books in 2025, featuring over 90 photographs from The Anonymous Project collection accompanied by interactive sticker sheets of aphorisms for readers to compose their own combinations.
• Golden Memories Exceptional art book co-published with Maison CF / Galerie Clémentine de la Féronnière and L'Artiere in 2025, printed on gold paper to extend the experience of Lee Shulman's Golden Memories lightbox and print series.
• Dressed to Impress Book edited by Prestel in 2025 featuring more than 200 vibrant, candid color slides presented in full-page spreads that reflect how people dressed during a transformative period in history, preserving the collective memory of the way we lived.
• Lightbox Artworks Signature fine art format consisting of Duratrans prints mounted on plexiglass and illuminated in custom backlit lightboxes, available in round, square, and totem configurations, as well as large-scale compositions featuring hundreds of slides (such as the 393-piece 'Memories Are Made of These' and the 299-slide 'United Memories'). Sold via gallery representation and direct e-commerce.
• Fine Art Prints & Golden Memories Editions Limited-edition fine art prints including Cibachrome prints (e.g., 'The Last Cibachrome', 30x45 cm), pigment prints on Hahnemuhle FineArt Baryta Satin paper, framed works such as 'Retable' on Hahnemuhle paper (120x40 cm), and the signature Golden Memories series printed on gold leaf paper. Sold through gallery representation and direct e-commerce.

Quantifiable outcome

• Exhibition at 30+ international venues including Rencontres d'Arles, Fotografiska Berlin, Photo London, Paris Photo, Photo Élysée
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.

• Maison CF / Galerie Clémentine de la Féronnière & L'ArtierecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Co-publishing partnership for 'Golden Memories' book, printed on gold paper - an exceptional art book extending the experience of the works from this series.
• Prestel PublishingcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2025Publisher of 'Dressed to Impress' (2025), featuring more than 200 vibrant candid color slides from the collection in stunning full-page spreads.
• JBE BooksminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2025Publisher of 'Couldn't Care Less' with Thomas Lélu (2025), featuring previously unpublished archive photos with interactive sticker sheets.
• Mini Hoxton PressminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2022Publisher of 'On the Road' (2022) and 'When We Were Young' (2020), focusing on specific themes from the collection - road trips and UK life.
• Textuel EditionscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2021Publisher of multiple books including 'Déjà View' with Martin Parr (2021), 'The House' (2019), and 'Being There' with Omar Victor Diop (2023).
• Éditions BessardminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2021Publisher of 'Head's Up' (2021), questioning the notion of the failed photograph through the collection.
• TaschencoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2019Publisher of 'Mid-Century Memories' (2019), the first major book from The Anonymous Project collection, documenting amateur photography from the era.
• FlammarionminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2019Publisher of French-language collaborations including 'Andrew est Plus Beau que Toi' with Arnaud Cathrine and 'Histoire de Familles' with Justine Levy.
• SNCF Gares & ConnexionsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Partnership with Rencontres d'Arles for exhibition at Gare de Lyon, Paris (2019), bringing The Anonymous Project to a broad public audience in a transit venue.
• Agnes B Foundation & PICTOminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Participated in the creation of 'The House' book (2019), with support from the Agnes B Foundation and PICTO for the exhibition in Alres.
• Omar Victor DiopcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSenegalese artist Omar Victor Diop collaborated with Lee Shulman on the 'Being There' series, creating approximately 60 works that insert Diop into vernacular slide images from The Anonymous Project collection. The series questions representations and contemporary society through photography, staging, and re-assembling of images.
• Martin ParrcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRenowned British photographer Martin Parr created 'Déjà View' with Lee Shulman, establishing a visual dialogue between The Anonymous Project's amateur photographs and Parr's iconic professional images. The collaboration reveals striking similarities in framing, subjects, and situations, questioning authorship and artistic value.
• Clémentine de la Féronnière GalleryflagshipChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExclusive gallery representation in France for exhibitions and fine art sales. The gallery represents The Anonymous Project at art fairs including Paris Photo and hosts solo exhibitions such as 'Golden Memories' in 2025-2026.
• Edwynn Houk GalleryflagshipChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExclusive gallery representation in the United States for exhibitions and fine art sales. The gallery represents The Anonymous Project at AIPAD New York and hosted 'Being There' in 2025.
• Various Photography FestivalscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerActive exhibition partnerships with major international photography festivals including Rencontres d'Arles, Fotografiska (Berlin, Shanghai, New York, Tallinn), Photo London, Paris Photo, Kyotographie, Momenta Biennale (Montreal), Photo Élysée (Lausanne), and INCADAQUÈS PHOTO FESTIVAL.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Hans Eijkelboom: Dutch photographer whose large-scale serial works of strangers in public spaces intersect directly with The Anonymous Project's theme of anonymized everyday photographic observation.
• Larry Clark: American photographer/filmmaker whose intimate documentation of private life parallels The Anonymous Project's use of personal amateur imagery as artistic raw material.
• Mack Books: Independent art-photography book publisher producing high-end photo monographs in the same category as Taschen, Prestel, and Textuel partnerships that anchor The Anonymous Project's publishing strategy.
• Alec Soth: American documentary photographer represented by major galleries and published by Steidl; comparable in operating model (fine-art prints + photobooks + museum exhibitions) and contemporary vernacular focus.
• Stephen Shore: American pioneer of color vernacular photography; comparable in subject matter (everyday life documented in color) and in positioning between gallery art and popular photographic culture.
• Erik Kessels: Dutch artist/designer known for installations built from found and amateur photography (e.g., '24h in the Life of Photos'), operating with the same curatorial-found-image approach and gallery/festival distribution model.
• William Eggleston: Pioneer of color photography of everyday American life; foundational reference point for the aesthetic positioning of vernacular color imagery as fine art that The Anonymous Project builds on.
• Martin Parr: Renowned British documentary photographer working in vernacular/everyday-life imagery; a direct collaborator on 'Déjà View' and the most stylistically aligned practitioner to The Anonymous Project's amateur-photography aesthetic.

Broad incumbents

• Magnum Photos: Iconic photography cooperative and agency with a much larger archive and global commercial platform; overlapping ecosystem (gallery representation, publishing, museum exhibitions) and similar curatorial model around a master archive.
• Aperture Foundation: Major photography publisher and cultural institution; relevant comparable for the photobook-as-primary-art-object model and museum-aligned programming that The Anonymous Project depends on.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-anonymous-project

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Anonymous Project