The Usher and Collection
What is a collection to me?
The definition of collection:
1. The action or process of collection someone or something
2. A group of people or things.
The second definition is the definition we are referring to. When I think of a collection I think of it as items of importance that are kept due to love, value or worth. Collections come in a variety of sizes due to how much is needed for the collection. For example if it’s a collection of a china tea set then there will only be a certain amount of things in the collection whereas if it’s something like my collection then it will carry on growing for as long as I want it too. Collections come under different headings depending on what it is, these headings being: belonging, national, domestic, conceptual and marking time, place and ownership.
When a collection comes under belonging it refers to places we feel we belong to, so place we have been to, which could also link with to national. This means that we may have collected thing such as tickets, wristbands, football or band memorabilia. We collected to show we have been to these place or to remember we have been to these places. With belonging it also represents subculture, place and also a shared hobby.
When I think of national I think of the place I have come from but my nationality, however it means more than that. With belonging and national been connected with both of them showing what you have been involved with. But national doesn’t just mean where you have been also can refer to a religion and country. National can also show representation, justification and glorification.
When a collection comes under Domestic the main type of collection I can think of is like cutlery, plates, cups ect. But also when I think of these particular things I also wonder if there is many complete collections of them, are they whole? Or are they fragmented?
My collection comes under belongings, my collection is performance objects that I have collected throughout my life. There are things such as tickets, programmes, photos, costumes, music ect, Anything that allows the memory of that particular show. This means my collection isn’t complete, it is whole. This isn’t my only collection I do have other ones, but this is my main collection that I take pride in collecting.
How do you decide what a collection is and when it complete?
A collection can mean different things to different people. My collection to someone else may look like junk, bits of scrap paper and random bits of clothing, bits of material, whereas to me it means so much and holds so many happy memories of that particular performance.
Why do we collect? Because we love memories or we like to have a complete set of something. I collect for my own sake, for my past to be brought into the future. Similarly to James Usher would collected because he liked the stuff he collection but left it so the people of Lincoln and there future generations to see it.
Can a collection ever be complete?
It is complete when you want it to be in my case, where as if it’s a collection that only has a certain amount of elements then that’s complete when you get the last piece.
James ushers collection can either been seen as excessive or varied. Some people may see him as a hoarder, some a man of many interests. The usher used to be his own house most things were left were he had them minus one or two bits. In my opinion he lived in a museum. His use of the space was different to a normal house, the used his rooms to house art and artefacts.
The usher and collection
Two buildings that make up the usher and collection, the site is a varied space. The first building is the collection and the second is the usher both hold two different sets of things. The collection holds the historical and archaeological side. It’s supposed to be “Lincoln’s history” but it comes from all around the world. Its content consists of things from the Stone age, Bronze age, Iron age, Roman, Anglo Saxon, Viking, Medieval and also the Civil war. There are also parts that focus on the money & trade and farming & food. The Usher within the usher there is mainly pieces of art such as paintings, statues, pieces of china and grandfather clocks. “The collectable items”.
James usher left his house for the city of Lincoln to represent them, however I want to question why there isn’t more items that represent the Lincoln community. It has items from all over the world but very little from Lincoln and the surrounding areas. Especially when the people of Lincoln are the ones of whom usually visit the place. Or even when tourist come to visit it, they must wondered why there isn’t more of the city it’s in but of course they will appreciate the art and history either way.