Artist and filmmaker Jessica Oreck cultivates what she calls “a collection of collections.” From tiny glass eggs to lone toy shoes to colorful beads and dominoes, the Office of Collecting & Design contains thousands of minuscule objects that Oreck has gathered over the years.
Previously housed near downtown Las Vegas, the archive of miniatures recently hit the road, traveling the West Coast in a 42-foot trailer. Oreck, her husband, and friend Emily Freeh retrofitted the camper into a mobile museum complete with flat files, card catalogs, and jars filled with model chairs, decks of cards, fragments of broken dolls, antique portraits, and so much more. Now, they’re gearing up for their second tour with stops in Portland, Boulder, and Salt Lake City, among others.
Oreck tells Colossal that trailer renovations took about eight months with financial backing from a Kickstarter campaign. As the first tour stopped in cities like San Diego and Los Angeles, the museum also became a site for public workshops, lectures, and even trinket swaps to engage the local community. Forthcoming visits will be similar, offering an opportunity for visitors to not only dig through the collections but also participate in programming around the project.
For those not on the planned route, the museum hosts “a series of clubs, swaps, and exchanges that connect a global community of curious minds and kindred collectors through small, meaningful mail exchanges—each one a reminder that wonder travels well. I like to think of it as part secret society, part postal playground,” Oreck says. These include the “Decoder Club,” which involves secret messages and strange objects from the collection, and “Treasure Club,” which sends members a small item each month.
Oreck is still finalizing plans for fall and looking ahead to tours through 2027. Keep an eye on Instagram for updates about stops in your city.
