I was perusing The NY Times yesterday, and there was an interview with a British actor who collects stamps. He said a collection isn't defined by how many of a thing you put in it, it's defined by what you leave out.
That's a pretty interesting thought!
And it spurred other thoughts that were mentioned in another thread.
Lots of folks here talk about their collections. My thought has always been that collecting is a matter of intent to build a collection, involving hunting for particular items and trying to fill perceived gaps in what one considers their collection. In other words, the essence of a collection for me has been intentional addition.
If you're not looking to build a collection, my argument goes, you're not a collector. You can count my electric guitars literally on one hand. I don't go guitar hunting to round out a collection. So I've never considered myself a collector.
Usually I have a particular project in mind for the instrument. Sometimes I fall in love with an instrument and buy it for that reason alone, knowing it'll come in handy in my work.
But I leave lots of things out, and that's a matter of intentional subtraction.
Have I been wrong all these years and curated a teensy-tiny collection, or do I just have a few guitars I like and find useful? And is there a meaningful difference?
That's a pretty interesting thought!
And it spurred other thoughts that were mentioned in another thread.
Lots of folks here talk about their collections. My thought has always been that collecting is a matter of intent to build a collection, involving hunting for particular items and trying to fill perceived gaps in what one considers their collection. In other words, the essence of a collection for me has been intentional addition.
If you're not looking to build a collection, my argument goes, you're not a collector. You can count my electric guitars literally on one hand. I don't go guitar hunting to round out a collection. So I've never considered myself a collector.
Usually I have a particular project in mind for the instrument. Sometimes I fall in love with an instrument and buy it for that reason alone, knowing it'll come in handy in my work.
But I leave lots of things out, and that's a matter of intentional subtraction.
Have I been wrong all these years and curated a teensy-tiny collection, or do I just have a few guitars I like and find useful? And is there a meaningful difference?
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