I ate a piece of art today

I got to go on a behind-the-scenes talk/tour with the curator of Williams College Museum of Art today. We got to see previews of upcoming exhibitions about ethnophotographics. We got to go into the storage in the basement, where there are over 13,000 pieces of art being housed. There is so much art in storage, things are hung from the ceiling & rafters, and packed together as close as it can get without actually touching. I loved it.

We also saw a little of the current exhibitions. One is by Felix Gonzalez Torres, called "Placebo". You can't really tell by the photo, but that is all hard candy wrapped in silver - about 1200 pieces. You are encouraged to eat the candy as part of the exhibition. I felt almost sinful touching the art, not to mention eating it. All your life you are told not to get too close, don't touch the art - even though it's one of my secret desires. I would die to run my fingers over a painting, to feel the brushstrokes and thickness of paint. You are forbidden, of course, because the natural oils and dirt from your hands destroys the work permanently. Anyway, the reason you are supposed to do this with this particular exhibition is because it is about AIDS. AIDS takes away from your body, little by little. This is what you are doing with the art. Also, you have about 1200 T-cells in your body, which AIDS destroys. One piece of candy for every T-cell. You, by eating the candy, are essentially "destroying" the art. The piece is no longer a perfect rectangle anymore, by the way. The edges are worn away and a little jagged. It's breathtaking.

I applied for an internship with Sol LeWitt this week at MASS MoCA. I am dying to get it.