ArtSeen
BILL OF RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES pertaining to FIFTEEN NESTING BOOKCASES that are now property of KUNSTMUSEUM AAN ZEE, OOSTENDE and that are to be made available to the CITIZENS OF OOSTENDE
I.
The Nesting Bookcase is a sculpture by artist Joe Scanlan. Fifteen copies of it have been purchased by the Kunstmuseum aan Zee (Mu.Zee), as part of its permanent collection.
II.
Every person living in Oostende has the right to borrow one of the Nesting Bookcases for a limited period of time.
III.
The object itself is free, but permission to borrow it must be arranged with the appropriate persons at the Mu.Zee.
IV.
Anyone who borrows a Nesting Bookcase is expected to demonstrate a common respect for public property.
V.
Anyone who borrows a Nesting Bookcase is expected to provide safe round-trip transportation for the object, from the Mu.Zee to their home or place of business and back.
VI.
Each loan period will end when the borrower feels that it is time for someone else to have a turn with a Nesting Bookcase and accordingly notifies the proper persons at the Mu.Zee.
VII.
Anyone who borrows a Nesting Bookcase is free to arrange it however they see fit without putting the object at risk of damage. Objects, books, photographs, or any other personal affects may be displayed on the Nesting Bookcase, or it may be left empty.
VIII.
Anyone who borrows a Nesting Bookcase is free to chronicle their experience with it however they like, and may distribute the resulting images or texts however they see fit.
IX.
The Mu.Zee is happy to see and archive any images or texts resulting from your time with a Nesting Bookcase.
X.
Anyone who borrows a Nesting Bookcase agrees to let the Mu.Zee know promptly if it gets damaged or stolen.
XI.
All Nesting Bookcases will be insured by the Mu.Zee for protection of the museum’s vested public interest only. If the borrower damages or destroys a Nesting Bookcase, the borrower agrees to be financially responsible for its full replacement.
XII.
Anyone who borrows a Nesting Bookcase agrees to abide by the tenets laid out here. If they cannot, the Mu.Zee reserves the right to cancel this agreement and have the object returned to the museum immediately at the borrower’s expense.
XIII.
As in all free and civilized democracies, a court of law shall have final jurisdiction over any disputes related to this agreement.
signature of borrower / date
Mu.Zee representative / date
Contributor
Joe ScanlanJOE SCANLAN is an artist in New York. The text included here is part of an ongoing experiment at the Museum aan Zee, Oostende.
RECOMMENDED ARTICLES
inSerial: part fifteen
Delusions of Being Observed
By Lewis Warsh
FEB 2018 | Fiction
Dear Robert, I’m sorry to be communicating with you in this way instead of talking to you in person or even on the phone, but I’ve been thinking about this for a long time, our relationship, which has lasted for more than a year. As you know. Sometimes it feels much longer—whole decades—and sometimes the shortest of intervals have passed since that fateful day we met on the B train.
The Menil Collection Reinstallation: Selections from the Permanent Collection
By Alex JenDEC 18-JAN 19 | ArtSeen
Founders John and Dominique de Menil built the collection on a belief that art could be something both sacred and modern, linking viewers to cultures across time by means of an inherent, shared poetry of form. So when the Menil announced a six month renovation in February to completely reconfigure and reinstall the galleries, displaying works that have never been exhibited, I was excited.
inSerial: part eight
The Mysteries of Paris
by Eugène Sue, translated from the French by Robert Bononno
MAY 2019 | Fiction
It was midday and the rain fell in torrents. The Seine, swollen by the continuous downpour, had risen to a dangerous height and flooded part of the wharf. From time to time, Rodolphe glanced impatiently at the toll gate. Finally, in the distance, he saw a man and woman advance behind the shelter of an umbrella. He recognized the Schoolmaster and the Owl.
Socrates Sculpture Park: Potential Energy
By Ivana MestrovicDEC 18-JAN 19 | Critics Page
I have heard stories from friends from the ’60s and ’70s that Mark would give you money if he had it and you needed it. Not that he had a lot of money. But if you had it, you shared it. He was one of the founders of Park Place Gallery which was a cooperative gallery. He gave Paula Cooper a piece to sell which helped to fund her first gallery. Perhaps this was the refugee spirit having emigrated to the US with no money when he was seven. Perhaps this was part of the spirit of the ‘60s. Perhaps it was just his nature.
