Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeremy Gibbs
Hi Jeremy, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
The Oddities Museum started from the personal collection of Jeremy Gibbs that began as a collection in his bedroom as a young boy. Even though the focus has changed a little, Jeremy has always sought after somewhat peculiar items. Growing up in Social Circle, Georgia lent itself to finding bones, bottles, rusted relics and old dolls & toys in the woods, old homesteads and growing up working beside my father doing plumbing I found stuff in old building and houses, basements & attics that customers were eager to give to my collection.
A lot of this collection would find itself into my assemblage art and installations and then over time the items I started collecting were works of art themselves that needed to assistance, but only be properly displayed. Through many years, Jeremy found the resources and relationships that helped him grow a massive collection of strange & unusual items from around the world.
Kim & Jeremy owned a plumbing business that was successful, but not fulfilling. We made the difficult decision to focus our energy and souls in what we love and sold the plumbing business. For a few years we operated as a prop house called Obscure Props, travelled the USA as a Freakshow/travelling museum with The Oddities & Curiosities Expo and a retail store in Little Five Points and Rainy Day Revival. We were always focused on growing our inventory so that we could offer the people of Atlanta a premier experience. Through a lot of dedication, time, and sacrifices we have been able to build something unlike anything else in the Atlanta area, this is The Oddities Museum which we officially open last April (2024) in Chamblee, Georgia. Now we are all under one roof – we offer oddities for sale, oddities for rent, and self guided tour of a very dense collection of strange & rare oddities. Items of note: large collection of real animal deformities (two-headed animals, cyclops animals, animals with multiple limbs – strange, but cute!), natural history – including full-mount lions, moose and rare animals, art from local artists and strange art from around the world, medical, science & asylum, vintage & antique carnival memorabilia, Victorian taxidermy including dogs & cats, medical human skulls & skeletons and the only two headed buffalo and a real jackalope. Some parts of the museum are creepy, but overall a fun experience.
We also host events, monthly late nights at the museum that patrons often use as “date night”, special opportunities to learn or experience (i.e. hold a human skull, taxidermy classes, tin type photos, etc). private events, educational opportunities and community outreach,
We dove in head first and havent stopped
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No its not been a smooth road. Even though things to “fall into” place as planned, sometimes it seems like we are trying to force a square pegs into a round hole. But! passion prevails, some of the things that have stood in our way that weve had to overcome are the expense of storing a huge collection without financial return before actually opening the museum. There were many factors including the lull in rental business due to COVID-19, a lull in rental business due to the Hollywood film strike, the many months of planning and curating before actually opening the museum. The transition running multiple businesses in multiple locations, before closing the plumbing business and relocating Rainy Day Revival to the same space as the museum. The many hours of dedication and the travel to obtain the collection.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about The Oddities Museum?
We are the Atlanta Oddities destination! There is nothing like this at all, anywhere.
Under one roof we offer oddities & curiosities sales, we help people build their own home museums, production rentals to elevate film, theatre, photography, art and special events experiences; social events – including art shows for local artists, animal rescues & adoption events, community outreach, educational opportunities (i.e. taxidermy classes, lectures, tin type), and a large Natural (and unnatural) History Museum.
We are very proud of our extensive collection – from floor to ceiling of things that are rare and very difficult to find, things that most people have never seen in their lives and will never see again.
Everyone is welcome, whether you are a dedicated oddities collector or a curious spectator there is something for everyone to see and we strive to give everyone a one of a kind experience.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
I love the diversity Atlanta has to offer, it’s a true melting pot. This offers art scenes, cultural experiences and different events
What we like the least about Atlanta is the traffic
Pricing:
- $10.00 museum entry
- $50.00 museum membership
- free to shop the store and gallery space
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.theodditiesmuseum.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theodditiesmuseum/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theodditiesmuseum
Image Credits
Ryan Lane, Ryan Zacchini, Erin Miller
