This course explores the ways in which objects and material culture embody personal narrative. Moving back and forth from ephemeral traces of events and experiences to the culturally invested luxury goods that create legacy to the objects that facilitate daily life, this class will use, as its primary references, examples that draw from queer and African American cultures to underscore the potential of objects to tell the stories that not only reflect majority traditions and experiences but those of the disenfranchised, the details of whose lives are often obscured. In addition to readings that will provide background for class discussion, student will be asked to play the roles of detectives, archeologists, and curators at various sites around New York City. Each student will also be asked to create an annotated material record that reveals the public and private lives of one individual. That record may consist of texts, objects or any variety of media chosen or designed by the student. This blogs serves as an archive for the work done in the context of this course and related materials that become relevant to this exploration.

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

9/11 Museum : Stones and Bones

Today, I had the privilege of visiting the 9/11 Museum for a field work report. It was a much more emotional experience than I would've ever predicted. Having been in this class for half the semester encouraged me to consider artifacts and evidences through a different lens, with more empathy and understanding. The collection of artifacts left over from the unfortunate event that was September 11, ranged from remaining pieces of the towers, the ground itself, clothing, notes and even unidentified remains. There was a specific gallery that housed pictures of all the deceased from the 2001 attack as well as the 1993 attack. Along with this gallery are not only their pictures but some of their personal belongings ranging from ballet shoes to hockey sticks. These might not be an object of rare findings, however it has sentimental value because for those of us who are strangers with these people do not know what their life was like. Upon seeing it, we know that this man played hockey back in his younger days and this woman kept her first pair of ballerina shoes from when she was a little girl. Sometimes, we keep these things to continue a tradition but sometimes these things remind us of who we were and have our stories shared.

Article: http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/07/07/stones-and-bones

- Nova

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