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The Honors College at FIU BOX PORTRAIT PROJECT “To begin to understand the power of things, you have to accept that they have lives of their own. I was lucky enough to have a mother who took me to lots of antique fairs and flea markets when I was a kid. She didn't tell me anything about fancy china or glassware or silver. Instead, unwittingly, she taught me a kind of history spelled out in everyday things -- a sort of anthropology of hopes and dreams. She pointed out dolls and toy animals that were similar to ones she'd loved in the '20s, and showed me the handbags and compacts that proper ladies used to carry. I learned that one of the most popular souvenirs of the 1939 World's Fair was a tiny pin in the shape of a Heinz pickle (she'd had one herself). I learned that during the Depression, men used to spend long hours making chains out of cellophane strips because they had nothing else to do. By looking at the objects people had left behind, I knew the kinds of things they did when they wanted to look good, express love, have fun or at least convince themselves they weren't miserable.” Stephanie Zacharek in a review of Deborah Solomon’s Utopia Parkway: The Life and Work of Joseph Cornell ( http://www.salon.com/march97/cornell970331.html) Project Description You are to create a portrait in a box format. The portrait can of any person you wish, such as a historical figure, a family member, a friend, or yourself. The box can be of any shape or format you wish. It can be a fishing tackle box, a milk crate, a jewelry box, a cigar box, a cardboard box, a glass case, a metal box, a mailbox, a safety deposit box, or whatever you feel represents the person you are portraying; it can even be a readymade item from the Container Store. Place objects within the box that you feel embody the person you are depicting. Tell us your or their story through objects in the way that Zacharek describes the manner in which she discovered the history of other people through items at antique shows. Use any item you wish, except a traditional photograph. Create a portrait of yourself or someone else using objects rather images.
Joseph Cornell. Untitled (Soap Bubble Set), 1936.
The Honors College at FIU |
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