From a letter written by John Cage to Rita Bottoms, head of Special Collections at the University of California at Santa Cruz, regarding the treatment of his mycology collection which he planned to donate to the university, quoted by Rita Bottoms in Riffs & Ecstasies:
“… in a botanical situation…” As opposed to space, area, environment— situation. What fascinating word choice!
But beyond that, this is a striking reminder of the need for utility in all of this. Cage’s mycology collection, which contained a number of archival materials related to the study of mushrooms, including only a few objects produced by the avant-garde composer himself, immediately went into use as a resource.
In her essay “John Cage, Mushrooms, & The Revolution,” Rita Bottoms notes that it was the only circulating collection in UCSC’s Special Collections at the time.
Enter, now, a world where special doesn’t mean off-limits, where a wealth of knowledge can be treasured and utilized at the same time.
I am now thinking about collections, the afterlife of an archive. Those collections that, if not recognized and preserved as important by virtue of being accumulated by a known public figure, become scattered artifacts.
We accumulate so much. Where should we put it? How should it survive us? Everything can be a resource. We can be of such use.