25,000 BP / D 1998
For his February 2020 installation of Insignificants, Tim Flohr Sørensen (University of Copenhagen) created and exhibited 25,000 BP / AD1998. To accompany each of the monthly Insignificants exhibits, Tim creates a bookmark. Below you will find an image of the one that he made for 25,000 BP / AD1998; here is the text.
A rose is a rose is a rose.
Gertrude Stein
One of my very first archaeological encounters revolved around a humble object, or, in fact, its negative trace. As a young student, I participated in the excavation of a stratum dating back some 25.000 years. Meticulously scraping off thin layers of soil, the outline of a hearth slowly began to appear. Across the center of the hearth lay a line of charcoal no more than five millimeters wide. Slightly off its middle, the line branched out in two, and I realized that this was the imprint of a twig.
Upon documenting the hearth, I continued excavating, removing the hearth and the combusted twig. Yet, the image has lingered with me. I have not been able to let go of the twig, which, through our brief encounter, got a new lease on life; despite burning away tens of thousands of years ago; despite being meek, even trivial and negligible. At first, I hardly noticed it; only later did I realze that the trace of the twig would not disappear.
A lasting, shallow sculpture from a transient and porous material. Or, just a twig.
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