Prullenbak met ingelegd motief van cirkels c. 1900 - 1910

This wooden trash can with inlaid circular patterns was made by 't Binnenhuis. I imagine the artist carefully selecting the wood, running their hands over the smooth surface, and then beginning to cut and shape the material with precision and care. It’s funny, isn’t it, to think about someone putting so much care into something meant to hold trash? I can see 't Binnenhuis thoughtfully arranging the circles, probably obsessing over getting the spacing just right. Maybe they saw the trash can not just as a functional object, but as a little sculpture, a moment of beauty in an otherwise mundane space. It makes me think about what we value and what we discard, both literally and metaphorically. As artists, we're always sifting through ideas, keeping some, tossing others. This little trash can reminds me that even the things we throw away can have a certain beauty, and that the act of creating, even something as simple as this, is a kind of conversation, a way of making meaning out of the mess of life.