#third coast

“For years I'd been curious about art handling and likened it to the way(s) a lover might handle her beloved—delicately, with so much care. The responsibility of an art handler is to ensure that the artifact or art object is treated in such a way as to preserve its integrity, its beauty over time. What then is the responsibility of a love to her beloved, when we ourselves are not physically built to last? Evidenced by our knees, we are meant to buckle. We are made for eventual collapse. Understanding this truth, the speaker in "Unframed" insists that she be handled with some urgency. I'd like to think that her beloved gives in to her insistence.“