Case Curation

The objects in this case were selected by members of the RISD Art Circle, a group of teen artists and art enthusiasts who explore the RISD Museum collection. Museums catalog and index objects based on physical characteristics, which can radically shift based on the way an individual museum professional might “see” an object. Examples in this room show how easily these interpretations can lead to misunderstandings. As young people, we are often mislabeled, misrepresented, and misunderstood. Some people can be quick to think of all teens as acting and living up to stereotypes, which undermines the personal stories that shape our unique identities. Recovering the roots of these objects is difficult, especially for pieces which did not enter the museum collection with the purpose of being treasured for their unique stories. Rather than label them using generalities, we wanted to give them with stories created by close looking. We invited the public to think alongside us in order to build a wider pool of speculative possibilities. In the absence of historical biography,  we want to repair these objects’ status as items that were once personally significant to individuals.