Rust

Rust is paradoxical, because it represents decay, but it also represents the presence of life, air, elemental interaction. Rust is metaphor in physical form, and it forms the foundation for the latest edition of the Object Lessons series.

Rust is as paradoxical as its subject, in that’s it’s by far the most ambitious entry in the series, and yet, it’s the least satisfying one. Rust starts off strong, embracing the possibilities represented not only by the material itself, but its color, its associations, and more. And then the author begins to wander, heading off down tangents so extended that you’re often left wondering how many degrees of separation from rust you’re going to get before eventually circling back to the actual subject at hand.

While some tangents can be enjoyable, most of these feel self-indulgent, diminishing whatever impact there might be in the connections he draws because he has taken so very, very, VERY long to get there.

That being said, Rust has its fascinating moments, those deeply poetic instants where metaphor becomes real and you get a tiny glimpse of the wonder that can reside inside seemingly ordinary items.