Ronde hoedendoos met deksel, van karton beplakt met roomkleurig papier c. 1960 - 1997

Tim Bönig made this round hat box with a lid out of cardboard covered with cream-colored paper. Think about the kind of person who might have owned this box, the hats that might have been carefully placed inside. In an era where hats were an essential part of one's presentation, this hat box was more than mere storage, it was a guardian of social identity. Consider the cultural rituals associated with hats, markers of class, gender, and occasion. This simple box becomes a vessel containing those prescribed social roles. The hats it protected were part of a visual language, signalling a woman's status and respectability. While outwardly simple, the hat box invites contemplation on the complexities of personal expression and societal expectations.