Bath Mat Date Unknown

Curator: Immediately, I see dawn. Or dusk, rather. A gentle fade, captured in soft, roseate hues... I'm thinking of laying this over my shoulders like a veil. Editor: The textile we're looking at is titled "Bath Mat," a silk weaving of unknown date and creator, held here at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. What resonates about calling this a "bath mat," instead of just simply "weaving?" Curator: Oh! The domestic elevation! Because it's unassuming, isn’t it? Calling it functional… Yet the delicacy suggests a deeper intent. Is it truly meant for soggy feet? Imagine stepping onto silk fresh from the shower! Editor: Precisely! That tension, I think, plays with notions of class, craft, and labor. Silk, a luxury item throughout history, is here in this form—seemingly ordinary. Did the original owner think so lightly of the object? Curator: Or, conversely, find joy in the everyday! Think about that: the maker’s devotion evident in each meticulously woven thread... such intention, lost so trivially. And these teardrop motifs – almost seed-like – running like rain. So soothing! It just begs to be stroked, this is beautiful. Editor: Indeed. Its aesthetic qualities could certainly subvert or reinforce those class lines. But given its state and presumed function, one can't help question how the work itself performs within different cultural spheres. Do such woven artifacts have more than a merely aesthetic value, a spiritual quality? Curator: Ah! The question then is how time reshapes function. What starts sacred inevitably shifts, often descending towards the profane – or the commonplace. Does knowing its possible banality diminish your appreciation? Editor: On the contrary, I think it highlights the complex social narratives embedded in everyday objects, prompting us to consider both their intended purpose and their eventual place in the museum. These institutions imbue the art with cultural value which in turn raises them far above their prior mundane associations, while some critics remain committed to unearthing what are conceived as these lost associations. Curator: I will say... even under glass, it somehow resists feeling totally, irrevocably ossified. There is still the feeling of potential, somehow woven directly into that silk. Almost beckoning... Editor: A potential born, no doubt, from its humble beginnings and unknown author. What do you suppose it takes, after all, for anyone to make one for their bathroom floors? A bold question, no doubt.