Comments on: So what?

So what?

carsonb — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 22:28:39 -0800

STEP 1 Buy 100 pieces of crap from thrift stores and garage sales.
STEP 2 Get 100 authors to write a fiction about pieces of crap.
STEP 3 ???
STEP 4 Profit!
Significant Objects hosts the stories for all 100 pieces of crap/art, but the last six are still available for bidding: Blue Vase by Lauren Mechling, Umbrella Trinket by Bruce Holland Rogers, Lighter Shaped Like a Small Pool Ball by Rob Agredo, Bar Mitzvah Bookends by Stacey Levine, Geisha Bobblehead by Edward "ed" Champion, and Missouri Shotglass by Jonathan Lethem.

By: mattoxic

mattoxic — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 22:49:22 -0800

goddam baseball mitt, descriptive as hell

By: milnak

milnak — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 23:00:40 -0800

In this case, step 3 isn't needed. This is a brilliant idea, well executed.

By: ooga_booga

ooga_booga — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 23:56:03 -0800

Bruce Sterling tweeted about his contribution a while back and I was sorry to find out it was fiction.

By: bigmusic

bigmusic — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:15:52 -0800

I've never been a photo guy. By that I mean I've never taken photographs to remember things, I am however a collector of oddities. I have dozens of rocks, costume jewelry, hats, toys, and other knick-nacks. I keep many of them in boxes and pull them out every once in awhile and remember things that have past. I have one particular rock that is round, brown, and generally ugly - some folks tell me that it's a geode. There are supposed to be beautiful crystals that have formed inside it, but I'll never know - because I'm not going to open it up. But is always sitting on my desk. It's a koan, on my desk. Everybody needs a desk koan.

By: marckadrian

marckadrian — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 01:06:24 -0800

Are you looking for a way to raise money to print the completed book? I'd look at the procedures and cost of self-publishing at Amazon then go to Kickstarter.com to raise the funds you need.

By: marckadrian

marckadrian — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 01:10:22 -0800

@bigmusic -- your "might be a geode" is reminiscent of Schrodinger's Cat. The cat might be alive, might not; you might have a geode, or there might be a cat inside...

By: DreamerFi

DreamerFi — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 02:44:59 -0800

I have one particular rock that is round, brown, and generally ugly But does it keep the tigers away?

By: fire&wings

fire&wings — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 03:37:49 -0800

Really, really good idea.

By: bigmusic

bigmusic — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 04:35:20 -0800

The cat might be alive, might not; you might have a geode, or there might be a cat inside... It's probably a dead cat. I haven't fed that rock in years. BTW, welcome to metafilter. Glad to have ya. A point of contention that you probably aren't aware of is using the @ symbol to address people in metafilter. Most folks here think it's akin to using all caps (yelling) or disruptive to threads. Most folks would prefer a "marckadin: blah, blah blah" or even just italicize a persons prior comment.

By: birdwatcher

birdwatcher — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 04:41:03 -0800

This project gets at the heart of a problem I've always had with the definition of art. Is it art only if someone else buys it? Does crap become art if I can sell it to someone?

By: applemeat

applemeat — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 07:09:58 -0800

This is fun--this is a really neat idea, and writing about crappy found objects, which we'll never run out of, allows the project flexibility to remain interesting and fresh. But I'm with milnak, step 3 is gimmicky and adds an unnecessary comedy rim shot instantly converting the experience from something unique to something ubiquitous. And what birdwatcher said.

By: joechip

joechip — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 12:38:00 -0800

The Missouri Shotglass story makes a big mistake. We're totally ambivalent about Iowa. It's Kansas that has gotten Missourians all in a tizzy for the last 150 years.