In conversation with Bonnie Devine about Indigenous objects in museum collections and the opening up of those collections to contemporary art practice, she made the point:
every object has a story and a job to do
I recorded that reflection on a sheet of foolscap and underneath her words with a different colour of pen (at some later date?) I wrote:
utility versus instrumentality . –>
I notice a little arrow pointing to some beyond. It is only some years later on a long (45 minute) walk home mulling over what could be the differences between utility and instrumentality that I finally braid together the elements and propose:
In the mode of utility an object carries a story; in the mode of instrumentality, objects are stripped of stories.
And the image is set here in duplicate to continue to do its work of a twice-told tale…
And so for day 2615
09.02.2014