Girl in red jacket swinging on a tree swing surrounded by a snowy Vermont landscape © Joe Curtin/Vault Archives

A tree house blends into its surroundings © Joel Barhamand/Vault Archives

As Susan Sontag, Roland Barthes, and other intellectuals from the latter end of the 20th century suggested, every photograph is nostalgic, if only for the fact that it depicts a scene that once was and is no longer. There are certain photographs, of course, that carry more memories than others. These are the rare images that instead of hitting us like a blow to the chest enter into our hearts as if through a pin-prick, reawakening the spots in us that are the most tender and exposed. They’re pictures that strike us when we least expect it, reminding us of our childhoods, of long lost loves, and other things that linger just below the surface of our consciousness.

If any time of year was made for nostalgia, it’s the holiday season. This group show was curated from Vault Archives to capture the nostalgia in its purest forms, as seen through everything from a Coney Island roller coaster to a well-worn pair of Mary Jane shoes.

Vault Archives is an exclusive, high-end agency offering images to commercial, advertising, and editorial clients. With a focus on authentic imagery from international artists, Vault Archives currently holds a roster of over seventy-five phenomenal photographers, each with a keen vision and natural ability to capture unforgettable moments. Through collaboration with subagents all over the world, Vault Archives is able to reach far and wide, bringing places and people together through vivid stories and outstanding images.

A young girl looks through viewfinder at the Stratosphere Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada © Rosie Cohe/Vault Archives

The Cyclone roller coaster ride at the Coney Island amusement park in Brooklyn © Barton Silverman/New York Times/Vault Archives

An unmade bed lit by a window © Louise Palmberg/Vault Archives

A roadmap reflected on a sunny windshield © Weston Wells/Vault Archives

The sun begins to set behind the amusement park at the Santa Monica pier © Joe Curtin/Vault Archives

A girl looks through the window of a house at night © Laurence Philomene/Vault Archives

A girl wearing a white dress, pink socks, and Mary Jane shoes © Laurence Philomene/Vault Archives

Family snapshots against a white wall © Morgan Rachel Levy/Vault Archives

Man holding a vintage Polaroid camera © Andrew Durham/Vault Archives

Slice of blueberry pie at a Pennsylvania diner © Rosie Cohe/Vault Archives

A dad and his two children play frisbee, Mendota, IL © Joel Barhamand/Vault Archives

A hand holding cigarette emerges from an old car on the highway © Noel Camardo/Vault Archives

A denim clad man talks on a phone leaning against an blue paneled van © Joel Barhamand/Vault Archives

A record player with a stack of vinyls © Joel Barhamand/Vault Archives

Sisters looking out of the window of their father’s vintage car in Santa Monica, CA © Laura Kleinhenz/Docuvitae/Vault Archives

A vintage suitcase and miniature airplane © Mark Peterson/Vault Archives

A child with a sparkler in Minnesota, the land of 10,000 lakes © Mark Peterson/Vault Archives

Hanging vintage clothespins for natural dyed fabrics to make quilts at Folk Fibers in Austin, Texas © Kate LeSueur/Vault Archives

A blue globe atop a rusty file cabinet © Nicholas Calcott/Vault Archives

Child with marshmallow at campfire © Robbie McClaran/Vault Archives

A girl enjoys a summer afternoon swinging on a tire swing in her front yard with the hot summer sun flaring behind her © Little Outdoor Giants/Vault Archives

Venice Simplon Orient Express © R. Haidinger/Anzenberger/Vault Archives

A swing set sits unused in a snowy yard in Elma, New York. © Valerie Sauers/Vault Archives

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