from the instructions for the Manchester conference

“May I also make you aware of a very special event that we have in store: Manchester based artist Hilary Jack will introduce her practice and facilitate an informal ‘Objects’ event. All delegates are invited to bring an object which has particular significance or meaning to them. The objects will be documented, labelled and displayed on the concourse during the conference. Participants will be encouraged to share the significance of their chosen object with the rest of the group in an informal discussion. All the objects will be returned to their owners at the end of the conference and participants will receive a limited edition certificate of participation. So please do all bring an object if you can!”

I’ll have to reflect on all the objects in this apartment before deciding which one to take along for this exercise.

But there are some obvious restrictions on my choice:

1. portability. I’m not carrying any favored large objects from Cairo all the way to Manchester.

2. replaceability. I’m also not inclined to take some uniquely precious object to Manchester and possibly lose it forever. It would be a horrible irony if this happens to any of the participants.

3. lack of intimacy. Since people are asked to say a few words about their treasured object, considerations of privacy might also rule out a few objects with a deeply personal meaning not likely to be shared with strangers.

All of this just as a reminder that the conditions of any experiment will tend to shape its results.

But this will be fun to think about. And since my object of choice will automatically be fit for a crowd of mostly strangers in Manchester, I’ll certainly have no qualms about discussing it here, whatever it turns out to be.