Julian Walker

b. 1954, England

The work comprises a video, shown in the upper study room, eight photographs and a number of text labels interspersed throughout the collection. It examines the history of the objects in the collection, from their original identity as objects made for use, to their being lost, hidden or removed from use, to their acquisition by the Hunt family. At this stage many of them were put into use in accordance with their original intended usage, as domestic items, as items to be worn or displayed in a way that enabled physical interaction. On passing to the museum they were removed from use again, acquiring a new identity as ‘museum objects’, yet visually they remain objects for use.

Walker’s work examines their role as objects to be used, by using them. The physical engagement involved asks questions about our engagement with preserved objects, how they change their identities, and what we feel when we touch objects from the past. In particular, it examines the nature of the projection of presence conveyed within the body of preserved objects, and the view of time as a helix along which points of repetition may be perceived, creating lines of connection.

(Text: give(a)way catalogue, 2006)