Events and Games c. 1965

Curator: This is Mieko Shiomi’s “Events and Games,” a small, unassuming object from the Harvard Art Museums collection. There's no date associated with it. Editor: It looks like a well-loved book, but the title gives me a hint that there's something else going on here. It feels like a treasure of secret knowledge. Curator: Shiomi was a key member of the Fluxus movement, which embraced chance and audience participation. This piece, like many of her works, questions traditional artistic boundaries. Editor: So, it's a book that's not quite a book, an invitation for something more. I love how such a modest object can contain so much potential energy. Curator: Exactly. It invites us to consider the political dimensions of play and the subversive power of collective action. Editor: Makes you think about all the possibilities hidden in the mundane. It’s a lovely piece, both in its simplicity and its conceptual depth.