Twitter
A renowned artisan
made an exclusive piece to be exhibited in the hall of a most magnificent mansion. His work was known by all to be very fine and carefully carved.
After much time and meticulous effort in his work, he was finished and ready to present in the hall a Golden Platter, rich with carvings and packed with details. One could see that the Artisan had been extremely careful and precise with his craftsmanship.
Not many people had yet seen this new work or knew what it was, as it was to be put on display for the first time on a particular day to a select group of knowledgeable people - true art connoisseurs of sorts.
The plate was transported to the mansion in the middle of the night, carefully handled with gloves so as not to damage it and placed on a plinth in the centre of the hall. The doors were locked until the morning so no one could know what it was and, in an atmosphere of excitement, it was to be unveiled at a grand ceremony.
Since the Artisan and his works had been well known and acknowledged to be of a certain distinct high quality, suspense was rising amongst those who knew about this crafted work and many wanted to be invited to the unveiling of this mystery artwork. However, only a select few experts had been invited to the proceedings.
That evening, attracted and drawn in by the Golden Platter, a magical dragon flew into the hall from the rooftop and pooped with precision right in the centre of the Golden Platter. The dragon had sought out somewhere special for this indiscretion and the golden platter was perfect.
The next morning the excited attendees in their ostentatious and opulent robes gathered at the entrance of the hall. The Artisan gave a few words of introduction and welcomed the people to enter into the hall to witness the unveiling of his latest work.
With a flourish, the butlers unveiled the work. Immediately one person stepped back in shock. She felt disoriented and didn’t quite know what was happening to her. She had a slight tingling feeling mixed with vomit. She fainted - so unappealing to her was the piece of art!
The Artisan did not want to say he did not do that piece of shit, since the people might think he was a fraud, so he acted normally, blocked his nose to the awful smell and pretended that the woman must be in awe of the mesmerising luminescence of the work.
The other invitees didn't want to appear appalled to the others either, since it would look as if they didn't like the work of art and thereby not seem to be knowledgeable enough in the ways of the art and its appreciation. The stench and texture was awful, yet amid the golden glow it started to draw people towards it.
“The contrast is nice,” said one connoisseur, and many more perspectives and interpretations were suggested by the attendees.
In fact they were all trying to outdo each other about how much they loved the work - so much so that it developed into something beautiful with its accompanying stories and, even though it stunk, they became used to the smell.
One person came closer and said, “How wonderful! It looks like chocolate.” So, not wishing to be outdone by the other, they each took a spoonful of the poop until all that was left was a golden plate that they thought was not
very interesting.
edited by Janet Cartlidge, copyright © 2011 Fabrice Schomberg
