During the past four years I have produced a number of albums, each of which represents, in part, the production and consumption of this popular event. "Vendors" is one of these albums.

For much of the 20th century the PNE functioned as a marketplace bringing the suburban farmer producer together with the urban entrepreneur / consumer for their relaxed mutual exchange of products and ideas. Being both an annual, community, agricultural fair and an urban amusement park, the fairgrounds provided exhibition space for food production from family-based farming operations.

The fair is a venue for competition in which prizes were awarded for excellence in categories ranging from livestock, milk, eggs and cheese; fruits and vegetables; kitchen preserves and handicrafts. For an urban public becoming increasingly more disconnected from rural life, these competitions provided entertainment as well as insight into the issues involved in quality food production, at the same time supplying a link with those people and their animals who provided for their basic food needs.